FUTURE  LIFE 

IN  THE  LIGHT  OFANCIENT  WISDOM 
AND  MODERN  SCIENCE 


LOUIS    ELBE 


Giiarlea   Joaselyn 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/futurelifeinlighOObaclrich 


i. 


snanj    "qd    ^    O^HmO^J 


FUTURE  LIFE 

IN  THE   LIGHT   OF   ANCIENT  WISDOM 
AND   MODERN    SCIENCE 


LOUIS   ELBfi 


FUTURE  fiiiE^:, 

IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  ANCIENT  WISDOM 
AND   MODERN   SCIENCE 


BY 


LOUIS    ELBEtp3eu.d,-. 
Lou  I -5  'Sfi^CLB^ 


BEING  THE  AUTHORIZED  TRANSLATION  OF  "  LA  VIE  FUTURE 

DEVANT    LA    SAGESSE    ANTIQUE    ET   LA 

SCIENCE    MODERNE" 


CHICAGO 

A.  C  McCLURG  &   CO. 
1906 


Copyright 

A.  C.  McClurg  &  Co. 

1906 

Published  March  10,  1906 


33 


THE    UNIVERSITY    PRESS,    CAMBRIDGE,  U.S.A. 


CONTENTS 
^att  <©ne 

FUTURE  LIFE   IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  ANCIENT  WISDOM 

Pagb 
INTRODUCTION xxiii 

Science  is  available  in  discussing  the  Survival  of  the  Human 
Soul.  —  The  Existence  of  the  Soul  not  a  Question  of  Meta- 
physics.—  Philosophers  of  the  Present  Day  have  supplied 
Matter  for  the  Inquiry. —  The  Author's  Anonymous  Pamphlet 
on  this  Subject.  —  The  Existence  of  Ether  affirmed  by  An- 
tiquity and  assumed  by  Scientists.  —  Universal  Belief  that 
the  Spirit  is  destined  to  outlive  the  Body.  —  Ether  found  in 
Organic  Life,  and  now  looked  for  in  Conscious  Life.  —  We 
apply  to  the  Human  Soul  the  Law  of  Indestructibility  of 
Matter  and  Energy. 

CHAPTER   I 

The    Idea  of  Survival    in  the  Various    Civilisa- 
tions OF  Antiquity 3 

The  Spiritual  Insight  of  the  Ancients.  —  Tradition  and  Primi- 
tive Philosophy  to  be  appealed  to  for  Help  in  understanding 
Spiritual  Matters.  —  Evidences  of  a  Belief  in  Survival  among 
Prehistoric  Races  and  Modern  Savages.  —  Chinese  Ancestor- 
worship. —  The  Evolution  of  the  Survival  Idea  among  the 
Egyptians.  —  Transmigration  of  Souls  believed  in,  but  ab- 
horred, by  the  Hindus.  —  Survival  as  viewed  by  the  Chal- 
deans, and  by  the  Gauls.  —  Immortality  obscurely  taught  in 
the  Old  Testament.  —  Taught  also  by  the  Greeks,  and  for  a 
Time  by  the  Romans.  —  The  Christian  Doctrine  of  Immor- 
tality and  Divine  Love.  —  Disagreement  of  Roman  Catholics 
and  Protestants  on  the  Question  of  a  Purgatory.  —  Survival 
as  viewed  by  Spiritists,  and  by  Theosophists. 

615773 


viii    *':.;*V        \:":\:CpNTENTS 
:•  •. : :-  :.';•.•   : . . -cHAPtER  ii 

Pact 

Prehistoric  Traditions  and  Remains 15 

Primitive  Funeral  Rites  as  Evidence  of  Belief  in  Survival. — 
Evolution  of  the  Idea  of  Future  Rewards  and  Punishments. 
—  Influence  of  this  Belief  on  Laws  and  Customs.  —  Customs 
which  show  that  the  Soul  was  believed  to  be  entombed  with 
the  Body.  —  The  Importance  ascribed  to  Burial  Rites. — 
Manes  and  Penates.  —  In  the  Stone  Age,  Resurrection  re- 
garded as  a  New  Birth.  —  Drawings  on  Prehistoric  Tombs, 
expressive  of  the  Hope  of  Resurrection.  —  The  Sun  regarded 
as  the  Author  of  All  Life.  —  Symbolical  Ornamentation  of 
Tombs  in  Egypt  and  Greece.  —  Summary  of  M.  Soldi's  Ideas 
on  Prehistoric  Monuments.  —  A  Forecast  of  the  Modem 
Theory  of  a  Vibrating  Etheric  Fluid. 

CHAPTER   III 

Savage  Tribes 28 

Customs  of  Savages  resulting  from  the  Universal  Belief  in 
Survival.  —  Embalming.  —  Cannibalism. —  Slaughter  of  Aged 
and  Infirm  Relatives.  —  Metempsychosis.  —  Division  of  the 
World  into  Infernal  Regions  and  Blessed  Regions.  —  Inde- 
pendent Elements  in  the  Human  Soul  as  viewed  by  Fijians, 
Greenlanders,  Algonquins,  Polynesians,  Malagashes,  Dako- 
tas,  Siamese,  Konds,  and  Burmese  Karens. 

CHAPTER   IV 

The  Chinese 34 

Influence  of  the  Survival  Notion  on  the  Development  of  Ancient 
Civilisations  as  exemplified  in  the  Chinese. — The  Origin  of 
Ancestor-worship  among  the  Chinese,  Hindus,  Greeks,  and 
Romans.  —  The  Family  System  founded  by  Confucius.  —  His 
Sacred  Books.  —  His  Contemporary  Philosophers :  Lio  Tsze 
in  China,  Pythagoras  in  Greece,  and  Sakyamuni  in  India.  — 
Lio  Tsze's  Belief  in  the  Survival  of  an  Individual,  Conscious 
Soul.  —  Composition  of  the  Soul.  —  The  Necessity  for  Cor- 
rect Funeral  Rites  and  Offerings  to  the  Dead.  —  Chinese 
Horror  of  being  deprived  of  Obsequies.  —  Swords  and  other 


CONTENTS  ix 

Pack 
Pointed  Articles  used  by  Ancient  Nations  to  drive  away 

Importunate  Spirits. — Analogy  between  the  Chinese  Funeral- 
tablet  and  the  Roman  Imagines.  —  The  Part  taken  by  De- 
parted Spirits  in  all  Family  Matters.  —  The  Son's  Duty  to 
continue  the  Daily  Ceremonial  for  the  Happiness  of  his 
Deceased  Father.  —  How  the  Law  provides  Heirs  for  Men 
who  have  no  Sons. 

CHAPTER  V 

The  Egyptians 50 

The  Influence  of  the  Learning  of  the  Egyptians  on  that  of 
other  Nations.  —  Their  Knowledge  of  Pure  Science.  —  Their 
Knowledge  of  Astronomy.  —  Their  Constant  Preparation  for 
the  Life  to  come.  —  Belief  in  a  Fluidic  Intermediary  between 
the  Body  and  the  Spirit.  —  The  Individual  Elements  of  the 
Soul.  —  Effects  of  various  Foods  upon  the  Soul. —  Regula- 
tions for  the  Preservation  of  Purity.  —  Provision  for  the 
Support  of  the  Life  of  the  Double.  —  Trial  and  Final  Destiny 
of  the  Soul.  —  Metempsychosis  for  the  Wicked  only.  — 
Monumental  Evidence  for  the  Idea  of  Survival. — Creative 
Power  of  the  Sun.  —  Symbols  of  the  Sun  and  of  the  Soul. — 
The  first  Rough  Outline  of  the  Atomic  Theory. 

CHAPTER  VI 

The  Hindus 63 

Ancestor-worship  among  the  Hindus.  —  Interdependence  of  the 
Living  and  the  Dead.  —  Similarity  between  the  Laws  of  the 
Chinese  and  of  the  Hindus  for  supplying  Heirs  to  Men  who 
have  no  Sons.  —  The  Soul's  Destiny  as  stated  in  the  Laws  of 
Manu,  and  in  the  Vedas. —  Metempsychosis  the  Cause  of  the 
Hindu's  Reverence  for  all  Living  Things.  —  The  Moksha  of 
the  Brahmins,  the  Nirvana  of  the  Buddhists. —  Extracts  from 
the  Sacred  Books  on  Reincarnation.  —  The  Theory  expanded 
in  Hindu  Poetry.  —  Abhorrence  of  the  Hindus  for  Reincar- 
nation. —  Asceticism  and  Meditation  the  Best  Means  for 
shortening  the  Cycle.  —  Reincarnation  the  Basis  of  Caste.  — 
The  Buddhist  Doctrine  of  the  Brotherhood  of  Man.  —  An- 
tagonistic Views  of  the  three  Principal  Schools  concerning 
the  State  of  the  Soul  after  Death.  — Hindu  View  of  the 
Composition  of  the  Soul  similar  to  the  Egyptian.  —  Classifi- 
cation of  the  Soul's  Elements.  —  Yama,  Arbiter  of  the  Soul's 
Destiny. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  VII 

Pagb 

The  Chaldeans 76 

The  Religion  of  the  Magi  Lofty  in  its  Conceptions  and  Free 
from  Idolatry.  —  Chaldeans  the  Founders  of  Astronomy.  — 
Their  Belief  in  a  Complex  Soul,  a  Bodily  Resurrection,  the 
Soul's  Immortality,  and  Rewards  and  Punishments  after 
Death.  —  A  Parsee  Priest's  Summary  of  the  Doctrine  of  the 
Nature  of  the  Soul.  —  Opinions  of  the  Magi  on  the  Future 
Life  opposed  by  Jinandii  Modhi  in  1893.  —  The  Wicked  to 
be  purified  in  Hell  and  admitted  to  Heaven.  —  Ceaseless 
Struggle  between  Ahura-Mazda,  the  Spirit  of  Good,  and 
Agramai-Nyons,  the  Spirit  of  Evil.  —  Evolution  of  the  Con- 
ception of  a  Single  God.  —  The  Eternal  Progress  of  the 
Soul  toward  Perfection.  —  Guardian  Angels  to  be  rewarded 
according  to  the  Good  Deeds  performed  under  their  Inspira- 
tion. —  The  Prayer  to  the  Ferohers,  or  Guardian  Angels.  — 
The  Progress  and  Kinship  of  all  Living  Beings.  —  Respect 
for  Women.  —  Monogamy. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

The  Gauls 86 

Immortality  the  Distinctive  Doctrine  of  the  Gaulish  Religion. 
—  Relations  between  the  Celts  and  the  Greeks.  —  Resem- 
blance of  Druidic  to  Pythagorean  Doctrine.  —  Druidic  Reli- 
gion and  Philosophy  now  known  only  by  References  in  the 
Classics  and  in  the  Songs  of  the  Bards.  —  Ascent  of  the 
Principle  of  Life  from  Plants,  through  Animals  and  Men,  up 
to  God.  —  Plurality  of  Inhabited  Worlds.  —  The  Moon  a  Pre- 
paratory Region  for  Earth,  and  for  Heaven.  —  Immortality 
not  a  Theory,  but  a  Dogma.  —  Effect  of  this  Doctrine  on  the 
Lives  of  the  Gauls.  —  Their  Belief  in  Divine  Unity.  —  Resem- 
blance of  their  Sacrificial  Rites  to  those  of  the  Hebrews.  — 
Analogies  between  Druidic  and  Chaldean  Religion. — The 
Mistletoe  a  Symbol  of  Immortality.  —  Adoption  of  Chris- 
tianity by  the  Druids.  —  Vestiges  of  Druidism  in  Early 
Christianity.  —  Joan  of  Arc. 


CONTENTS  xi 


CHAPTER  IX 

Pagb 

The  Jews 98 

Immortality  obscurely  taught  in  the  Old  Testament.  —  Quota- 
tions on  this  Subject  from  the  Book  of  Wisdom,  Ezekiel,  Job, 
Daniel,  Maccabees. —  Why  Job  and  Maccabees  cannot  be 
viewed  as  proving  that  the  Jews  believed  in  Immortality.  — 
Moses  probably  a  Believer  in  the  Doctrine.  —  A  Wide-spread 
Belief  that  the  Pentateuch  holds  a  Hidden  Meaning.  —  Three 
Different  Words  used  in  the  Bible  to  signify  the  Immaterial 
Part  of  Man.  —  Evidence  that  the  Old  Testament  admits  a 
Belief  in  Survival,  and  in  the  Power  of  the  Dead  to  mani- 
fest themselves.  —  Probability  that  the  Israelites  practised 
Ancestor-worship.  —  Their  Laws  for  providing  Heirs  for  Men 
who  had  no  Sons.  —  Their  Hopes  for  the  Dead.  —  Sheol  com- 
pared to  Purgatory.  —  Survival  plainly  taught  in  the  Cabala 
and  the  Zohar.  —  Rotation  of  the  Earth  taught  in  the  Zohar. 

—  Reincarnation  taught  in  the  Time  of  Christ. 

CHAPTER  X 

The  Greeks .    109 

Immortality  inherent  in  the  Traditions,  Poetry,  Philosophy,  and 
Religion  of  the  Greeks.  —  Their  Ancient  C  ustom  of  sacrificing 
to  the  Shades  of  the  Heroes.  —  Their  Horror  of  being  de- 
prived of  Sepulture.  —  Examples  from  Homer,  Pindar,  and 
Valerius  Maximus.  —  Funeral  Banquets  participated  in  by  the 
Dead.  —  Tombs  decorated  with  Images  of  the  Goddesses  of 
Life.  —  Hesiod's  Description  of  the  State  of  the  Dead. — 
Reinach's  Interpretation  of  the  Eternally  Renewed  Labours 
of  Sisyphus  and  Others. — Metempsychosis.  — Marks  by  which 
the  Greek  Mythology  shows  its  Egyptian  Origin.  —  Results 
of  the  Visit  of  the  Poet  Orpheus  to  Egypt.  —  The  Doctrine 
of  Immortality  formulated  anew  by  Pythagoras.  —  How  he 
became  initiated  into  the  Egyptian,  Jewish,  and  Assyrian 
Religions.  —  His  View  of  the  Relations  of  Body,  Soul,  and 
Spirit.  — The  Role  of  the  Etheric  Fluid.  — This  Fluid  as 
viewed  by  Pythagoras  and  by  Newton.  —  The  Delphic  Oracle. 

—  Heaven  without  Reincarnation  only  for  the  Few.  —  Pythag- 
oras's  Theosophy.  —  Survival  the  Basis  of  the  Pythagorean 


xii  CONTENTS 

Page 
Doctrine  and  of  the  Revelations  made  in  the  Mysteries. — 
The  Sacred  Symbols  used  in  the  Mysteries.  —  The  Survival 
Idea  expanded  by  Plato.  —  The  Influence  of  his  Ideas  in 
developing  Christian  Dogma.  —  His  Belief  in  Plural  Ex- 
istences. —  His  Views  on  Man's  Immaterial  Part.  —  The 
Objective  Existence  of  Ideas.  —  Resemblance  between  Plato's 
Theory  of  the  Divine  Logos  and  the  Exordium  of  St.  John's 
Gospel.  —  Immortality  and  Reincarnation  in  the  Writings  of 
the  Neoplatonists. 

CHAPTER  XI 
The  Romans 126 

Roman  Ideas  and  Institutions  bequeathed  to  Modern  Civilisa- 
tions. —  Resemblance  of  the  Ancestor-worship  of  the  Romans 
to  that  of  the  Chinese  and  other  Ancient  Nations.  — Care  of 
the  Romans  for  the  Happiness  of  the  Shades.  —  Offerings  to 
the  Lares.  —  Functions  of  the  Pater.  —  The  Absolute  Need  of 
Heirs  in  every  Family.  —  Importance  of  the  Tutelary  Deities 
at  all  Family  Ceremonies.  —  Relation  of  City  Government  to 
Family  Organisation.  —  Patricians  and  Plebeians.  —  Recog- 
nition of  the  City  Gods  in  Wars  and  Treaties.  —  The  Etruscans 
probably  acquainted  with  the  Egyptian  Doctrine  of  the  Nature 
of  Man.  —  Testimonies  of  Cato  and  Cicero.  —  Roman  View 
of  Immortality  not  Personal,  but  Collective.  —  Fear  of  the 
Future  Life  combated  by  Lucretius,  and  shared  in  by  Virgil. 
—  Belief  that  the  Souls  of  the  Dead  lived  in  or  near  the 
Grave.  —  Spirit-raising.  —  The  Animus  and  the  Anitna.  — 
Ovid's  Recognition  of  Transmigration.  —  Survival  taught  in 
the  iEneid.  —  How  Rome  was  prepared  to  receive  the  Chris- 
tian Doctrine  of  Personal  Immortality.  —  Spread  of  this 
Doctrine  throughout  the  World. 

CHAPTER   XII 
Christianity 137 

Immortality  brought  to  Light  in  the  New  Testament.  —  Christ's 
Teachings  on  Heaven,  Hell,  the  Resurrection,  and  the  Last 
Judgment.  —  Divergences  of  Opinion  regarding  the  Inter- 
pretation of  the  Resurrection  and  the  Judgment.  —  Immor- 
tality   proved   by   the    Raising  of  the  Dead,  by  Christ's 


CONTENTS  xiii 

Pagb 
Statements,  and  by  Paul's  Argument.  —  The  Glorified  Body 
of  Christ  a  Pledge  of  the  Resurrection  Body  of  Christians. 

—  The  Influence  of  Science  in  modifying  Theological  Views 
of  the  Resurrection.  —  Constitution  of  the  Soul.  —  Theory 
that  the  Glorified  Body  exists  now  in  the  Physical  Body. 

—  This  Fluid-like  Body  and  Preexistence  both  disregarded 
in  Traditional  Doctrine.  —  Declaration  by  the  Councils  of 
Constantinople  and  Chalcedon  that  Human  Destinies  are 
fixed  for  ever  at  Death.  —  The  Notion  of  Preexistence  not 
condemned  in  the  Gospels.  —  Hints  of  it  in  the  Cases  of  John 
the  Baptist,  the  Man  that  was  born  Blind,  and  Nicodemus.  — 
Believed  in  by  Origen  and  St.  Augustine.  —  The  Last  Judg- 
ment accepted  in  the  Religion  and  Philosophy  of  the  Principal 
Civilisations  and  in  Christianity.  —  Opinions  regarding  it  held 
by  St.  Ambrose  and  St.  Augustine.  —  Premonitory  Signs  of 
the  Judgment.  —  The  Judgment  itself.  —  Modification  of  the 
Popular  Idea  of  Hell  in  Times  of  Origen,  St.  Gregory,  and 
St.  Augustine.  —  Dante's  "Inferno."  —  Man's  Inability  to 
conceive  the  Joys  of  Heaven.  —  The  Legend  of  Alfin,  the 
Monk  of  Olmutz.  —  Degrees  of  Glory  in  Heaven. — Possibility 
of  Forgiveness  after  Death.  —  Gradual  Rise  of  the  Notion  of 
Purgatory.  —  Decision  of  the  Council  of  Trent.  —  Necessity 
of  the  Doctrine  for  the  Comfort  of  Christians.  —  Sale  of 
Indulgences  the  Chief  Cause  of  the  Reformation.  —  Purga- 
tory a  Felt  Want  in  Protestant  Churches.  —  Conditional 
Immortality. 

CHAPTER  XIII 

Conditional     Immortality     in     the     Protestant 
Churches i6o 

^-|c^  Dr.   Edward  White's    "Conditional  Immortality,  or  Life  in 
Christ."  —  Immortality  not  natural  to  Man,  but  bestowed  on 
*         ,     the    Righteous.  —  This   Theory  strengthened  by  the  Dar- 
winian Theory,  and  by  Drummond's  "  Natural  Law  in  the 
.iA  Spiritual  Worid."  — The  Same  Line  of  Argument  in  OUiff's 

"  Le  Probl^me  de  I'Immortalite."  —  Immortality  for  all  Man- 
kind implies  the  Same  for  Animals  and  Plants. — Preexistence 
fif^  .  from  all  Eternity  a  Necessary  Postulate  for  Universal  Immor-  /  ^  ^^^-^ 

^^^^r      tality.  —  The  Immortality  of  the  Righteous  due  to  the  Meritss.  UA'^M^'-"  ' 
I   l>-  '^  of  Christ.  —  The  Survival  of  the  Righteous  in  the  Spiritual  N^i^-J^  O*  ^!.t 
World  compared  to  the  Survival  of  the  Fittest  in  the  Natural  ft-C    %- 


^ 


xiv  CONTENTS 

Pagb 
World.  —  St.  Paul's  References  to  the  Fate  of  the  Wicked 

suggest  Destruction,  and  not  Eternal  Suffering.  —  Universal 

Immortality  a  Dogma  of  the  Church  as  early  as  the  Fourth 

Century.  —  Christ  having  suffered  for  All,  All  may  attain 

Immortality. 

CHAPTER  XIV 

Spiritism  and  Theosophy 167 

The  Astral  Body  the  Same  as  the  Egyptian  T'W  and  the  Elysian 
Shades.  —  Its  Existence  forgotten  under  Scholastic  Teaching. 

—  Spiritistic  Theory  of  the  Fates  of  Discarnate  Souls.  — 
Diabolical  Possession. — Power  exercised  by  Discarnate  Spirits 
through  the  Astral  Body  of  the  Medium.  —  Table-Turning, 
as  a  Means  of  Communication,  inferior  to  Hypnotic  Trance.  — 
Lack  of  Authenticity  in  Spirit  Communications. — Theory  that 
the  Incarnation  of  Man  is  unitive.  —  Character  of  the  Astral 
Body  determined  by  the  Life  led  in  the  Physical  Body. — 
Need  of  Repeated  Reincarnations.  —  The  Five  Invisible 
Bodies  distinguished  by  Theosophists,  in  Addition  to  the 
Physical  Bpdy.  —  Resemblance  of  this  Doctrine  to  the  Doc-  /^ 
trines  of  Egyptians,  Hindus,  and  Chaldeans.  —  Functions  and 
Composition  of  the  Etheric  Body.  —  Of  the  Kamic  or  Astral 
Body.  —  Rise  of  the  Soul  when  freed  from  the  Astral  Body. 

—  Development  of  the   Buddhistic   Body.  —  Reincarnation  ' 
demanded  by  the   Law  of  Karma.  —  Evolution  after  Rein-  \ 
carnation.  —  Majority  of  Mankind  blind  to  Karma. -— Inflexi- 
bility of  this  Law.  —  Development  continuous  from  Mineral 
Molecules  to  the  Highest  Living  Beings.  —  Development  of 

the  Invisible  Bodies  parallel  to  that  of  the  Faculties. — 
Essential  Difference  between  Theosophy  and  Spiritism.  — 
Theosophical  Theory  of  the  Means  of  acquiring  Knowledge 
of  the  World  beyond. 


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CONTENTS  XV 

FUTURE   LIFE  IN  THE   LIGHT   OF  MODERN   SCIENCE 


CHAPTER   I 

Pagb 

Deductions  from  the  Fundamental  Sciences      .    .    185 

The  Future  Life  generally  pictured  by  the  Imagination.  — . 
Science  now  expected  by  its  Votaries  to  solve  Problems  out- 
side the  Domain  of  Matter.  —  It  has  already  modified  our 
Views  of  the  Nature  of  the  Soul.  —  Why  Theories  of  a 
Future  Life  are  subject  to  Experimental  Investigation.  —  The 
Material  Existence  of  Heaven  and  Hell.  —  Our  Right  to  in- 
quire into  the  Nature  of  Psychic  Force.  —  General  Principles 
revealed  by  Astronomy,  the  Physical  Sciences,  Mechanics.  — 
The  Function  of  Ether  in  the  Physical  Forces  and  in  Life. 
—  The  Personality  of  Every  Living  Organism  not  affected 
by  Changes  of  its  Molecules.  —  Probable  Connection  of  the 
Life  Force  with  the  Vibrations  of  Ether.  —  The  Inability  of 
Science  to  acquaint  us  with  Absolute  Truth.  —  The  Assump- 
tion of  the  Presence  of  Ether  necessary  in  the  Study  of 
Matter. 

CHAPTER   II 

Astronomy.  —  The  Earth's  Place  in  the  Universe    195 

The  Role  of  Astronomy  in  correcting  False  Views  of  Cosmog- 
ony.—  The  Erroneous  Conceptions  of  the  Old  Theologians 
not  necessarily  those  of  the  Bible.  —  Opposite  Views  as  to  the 
Relative  Ages  of  the  Earth  and  the  Sun.  —  The  Probability 
of  the  Existence  of  Beings  like  Man  in  the  Other  Worlds.  — 
Possibility  of  exchanging  Ideas  with  the  Inhabitants  of  Venus 
and  Mars.  —  How  the  Theory  of  the  Plurality  of  Worlds 
affects  the  Incarnation  and  the  Redemption.  —  Light  thrown 
by  Geology  on  the  Length  of  the  Habitable  Period  of  Each 
World.  —  The  Agreement  between  Science  and  Religion  to 
be  effected  by  the  Pope. 


xvi  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER   III 

Pagb 

The     Physical     Sciences.  —  Indestructibility     of 
Matter  and  Energy 210 

The  Future  Influence  of  the  Physical  Sciences  in  modifying 
Religious  Beliefs.  —  The  Law  of  Indestructibility  applicable 
to  Energy  as  well  as  to  Matter.  —  The  Unchangeableness  of 
Molecules  of  Living  Matter.  —  Atoms  subject  to  Disaggrega- 
tion.—  The  Resurrection  Body  conceived  to  be  Etheric. — 
Apparitions  also  Etheric.  —  Interdependence  of  Heat,  Elec- 
tricity, and  Light.  —  Interchange  of  Energy  between  the  Sun 
and  the  Planets. 

CHAPTER   IV 

The  Conception  of  Ether  in  Matter  and  Energy    220 

The  Nature  of  Ether.  —  Indispensable  for  the  Transmission 
of  Energy.  —  Its  Vibrations  rapid  beyond  Imagination,  and 
connected  with  Light,  Heat,  and  Electricity.  —  Its  Atoms 
infinitely  Small.  —  The  Vibrations  of  Rontgen  Rays.  —  Ether 
is  the  Agent  of  all  Manifestations  of  Energy.  —  Essential  to 
Matter  also.  —  The  Indivisibility  of  Atoms  purely  Theo- 
retical. —  Electrical  Experiments  seem  to  demonstrate  their 
Complexity.  —  The  Theory  of  Ions.  —  The  Complexity  of 
Atoms  confirmed  by  Rontgen  Rays.  —  Perrin's  View  of  the 
Structure  of  Atoms.  —  Revolutions  of  their  Constituent  Parts. 
—  Radio-activity  a  General  Property  of  Matter.  —  It  is  the 
Manifestation  of  the  Internal  Energy  of  the  Atom.  —  Dr. 
Le  Bon's  Experiments  reducing  Certain  Elements  to  the 
Colloid  Condition.  —  Isomerism  and  the  Principle  of  Varying 
Affinities.  —  The  Oscillatory  Movement  of  Atoms.  —  Meta- 
elements.  —  All  Inert  Matter  supposed  to  consist  of  One 
Ultimate  Element.  — The  Return  of  Matter  to  Chaos. 

CHAPTER  V 
The  Function  of  Ether  in  the  Universe   ....    241 

All  Manifestations  of  Energy  connected  with  Variations  of 
Ether  Atoms.  —  Deductions  from  the  Laws  of  Etheric  Action 
in  this  World  may  be  extended  to  the  Universe  as  a  Whole. 


CONTENTS  xvii 

Pagb 
—  The  Universe  believed  to  be  Finite.  —  The  Tendency 
toward  Uniformity  in  the  Distribution  of  Heat.  — Gradual 
Exhaustion  of  the  Energy  of  Ether.  —  Arguments  against 
the  Eternity  of  Matter.  — ^  Dynamical  Transformations  in  the 
Universe  Susceptible  of  Mathematical  Investigation.  —  An 
Infinite  Intelligence  would  thus  have  a  Perception  of  the 
Future. —  The  Indelible  Trace  of  Past  Action  throughout  the 
Universe. 

CHAPTER  VI 

Biology.  —  Matter  and  Life 249 

Living  and  Conscious  Force  amenable  to  the  Law  of  Inde- 
structibility. —  The  Probability  that  any  Organic  Force  inde- 
pendent of  Matter  will  survive  the  Death  of  the  Organism.  — 
The  Usual  Division  of  Nature  into  Three  Kingdoms.  —  Man's 
Place  in  Nature.  —  Uncertainty  of  the  Boundaries  of  these 
Kingdoms.  —  Life  the  Outcome  of  Molecular  Affinities.  — 
Apparent  Evolution  of  Inanimate  Matter.  —  Internal  Move- 
ments in  Liquids  and  Metals.  —  Phenomena  that  seem  to 
indicate  Memory  in  Metals.  —  Leibnitz's  Opinion  that  no 
Inorganic  Kingdom  really  exists.  —  Determinism  in  the  Cells, 
or  Plastids,  of  Living  Bodies.  —  Determinism  in  the  Vital 
Phenomena  of  the  Lower  Organisms.  —  Consciousness  gov- 
erned by  the  Determinism  of  Natural  Law.  —  The  Power 
of  the  Will  subject  to  the  Same  Law.  —  The  Freedom  of 
the  Will  an  Illusion. 

CHAPTER  VII 
The  Vital  Vortex 263 

All  Organic  Forces  subject  to  Determinism  and  to  the  Law  of 
Indestructibility.  —  Determinism  not  inconsistent  with  Inter- 
vention of  a  Purely  Directive  Force.  —  Recognition  of  this 
Principle  by  Claude  Bernard  and  Edmond  Perrier.  —  The 
Difference  between  Elementary  Cells  and  Mere  Protoplasm. 
—  Cuvier's  Comparison  of  the  Movement  of  Molecules  in 
the  Body  to  that  of  those  in  a  Whirlpool.  —  Action  and  Re- 
action between  the  Body  Molecules  and  the  Ether. —The 
Function  of  Microbes  in  Vegetation.  —  What  it  is  that  de- 
termines the  Kind  of  Animal  that  will  spring  from  a  Life- 


xviii  CONTENTS 

Page 

germ.  —  The   Theory  of  Heredity.  —  The   Part  it  plays  in 

preserving  the  Lives  and  Instincts  of  Animals.  —  Immuta- 
bility of  Species  not  Absolute.  —  Evolution  of  Human  Fac- 
ulties.—  Ether  as  an  Aid  to  Evolution.  —  The  Action  of  the 
Moral  upon  the  Physical.  —  Views  held  on  this  Point  by 
Quatrefages,  Milne-Edwards,  and  Perrier.  —  Replies  to  the 
Materialistic  Theories  of  Le  Dantec  and  Others.  —  The  Mind 
creates  the  Brain,  not  the  Brain  the  Mind.  —  The  Gradual 
Consumption  of  Vital  Energy  in  the  Production  of  Heat.  — 
Man''s  Hope  for  the  Time  when  this  Consumption  will  be 
Complete. 

CHAPTER  VIII 
The  Border-land  of  Science 283 

The  Higher  the  Organism,  the  more  Complex  is  the  Etheric 
Grouping  constituting  its  Life-force.  —  Revival  of  the  An- 
cient Theory  that  Various  Faculties  may  be  distinguished  in 
Etheric  Bodies.  —  Equilibrium  of  Material  Forces  undis- 
turbed by  the  Intervention  of  the  Life  Principle.  —  Evidence 
of  the  Independent  Existence  of  this  Directive  Element  to 
be  looked  for  among  Certain  Mysterious  Phenomena.  —  The 
Difficulty  of  Proof  lies  in  the  Fact  that  these  Phenomena 
cannot  be  reproduced  at  Will.  —  Inquiry  hindered  by  the 
Apathy  and  Hostility  of  Scientists.  —  Even  Physics  and 
Chemistry  not  free  from  an  Illusive  Irregularity  in  their 
Phenomena.  —  Examples  mentioned  by  Camille  Flammarion. 

—  Scientists  cannot  explain  Phenomena  producible  at  "Will, 
without  the  Agency  of  Certain  Hypothetical  Elements. — 
Outline  of  the  Plan  to  be  followed  in  Subsequent  Chapters. 

CHAPTER   IX 
The  Odic  Fluid 294 

Lack  of  Direct  Proof  of  the  Existence  of  the  Fluidic  Body. 

—  Odic  Radiation  Imperceptible  to  the  Majority  of  Men.  — 
Believed  in  by  Maxwell,  and  afterwards  by  Mesmer  and 
De  Montravel.  —  The  Odic  Fluid  as  described  by  Deleuze. — 
Researches  of  Drs.  Charpignon  and  Despine.  —  Experiments 
by  Baron  Reichenbach,  who  applied  the  Name  Od  to  this 
Radiation.  —  The  Difference  between  the  Odic  Radiations 
from  the  Right  and  Left  Sides.  —  How  the  Odic  Fluid  is 


CONTENTS  xix 

Pagb 
transmitted.  —  Not  to  be  confounded  with  the  Magnetic 
Fluid.  —  Reichenbach's  Efforts  to  bring  the  Odic  Fluid  to 
the  Perception  of  Ordinary  Men.  —  His  Conclusions  accepted 
by  Wharley,  Chazarein,  Decle,  Barety,  and  De  Rochas. — 
Description  of  the  Fluid  as  observed  by  De  Rochas.  —  Its 
Objective  Existence  not  yet  a  Scientific  Certainty.  — Recent 
Experiments  in  which  Light  Objects  are  moved  apparently 
by  Odic  Radiation,  —  Baraduc's  Theory.  —  Answer  to  the 
Objection  that  the  Effects  attributed  to  Od  may  be  due  to 
Heat.  —  Radiations  from  Bodily  Organs  photographed. — 
Experiments  by  Charpentier  and  Blondlot  and  Maxwell. 

CHAPTER   X 

The  Extern alisation  of  the  Ethereal  Double      .    313 

The  Link  between  Soul  and  Body.  —  Visible  Manifestations  of 
the  Ethereal  Body.  —  Externalisation  by  Telaesthesia  and  by 
Materialisation.  —  Difficulty  and  Danger  in  studying  the 
Astral  Body.  —  Only  Exceptional  Persons  suitable  as  Subjects 
for  Experimentation.  —  Pioneer  Investigators.  —  De  Rochas 
on  "  The  Externalisation  of  Sensitivity."  —  Bewitchment 
by  means  of  a  Simulacrum,  or  "  Mummy."  —  Sensitivity 
in  the  "Mummy"  Analogous  to  Rapport  during  Hypnosis. 
—  Manifestation  of  the  Ethereal  Body  by  so-called  Spirit 
Rapping.  —  Levitation.  —  Bilocation.  —  Luminous  Manifesta- 
tions.—  Materialisation.  —  The  Spiritistic  View  of  Spirit 
Rapping  and  Oral  or  Written  Messages.  —  Wonderful  Powers 
of  Mediums  under  Hypnosis.  —  Present  Impossibility  of  prov- 
ing the  Genuineness  of  Spiritistic  Phenomena.  —  The  Author 
proposes  a  Dematerialisation  Experiment  that  would  be 
Conclusive. 

CHAPTER  XI 
Manifestations  at  Great  Distances. —Telepathy    331 

Several  Kinds  of  Telepathic  Impression.  —  Recent  Investiga- 
tions giving  New  Insight  into  the  Human  Organism.  —  Spon- 
taneous Telepathy  described.  — Telepathy  distinguished  from 
Pure  Hallucination.  —  Points  to  be  determined  in  making 
this  Distinction.  —  Investigations  made  from  1883  to  1886 
by  the  London  Society  for  Psychical  Research.  —  The  Ap- 
pearance of  a  Phantom  and  the  Death  of  the  Person  not 


CONTENTS 

Pagb 
always  Simultaneous.  —  Investigations  by  the  International 
Congress  of  Experimental  Psychology,  Paris,  1889,  and  by 
Flammarion,  1899.  —  The  Proportion  of  Coincidences  in  a 
Large  Number  of  Cases  taken  as  a  Test  of  Telepathic 
Manifestations.  —  Spontaneous  Telepathic  Manifestations 
explained.  —  Facts  showing  that  such  Manifestations  require 
a  Certain  Concurrence  of  Circumstances.  —  Experiments  in 
Transmission  of  Thought  and  Images,  by  Richet,  Gilbert, 
Janet,  and  Others.  —  Experimental  Telepathy  differs  some- 
what from  Spontaneous.  —  The  Vibration  Theory.  —  These 
Vibrations  explained  by  Analogies.  —  The  Action  of  Telepathy 
Uncertain  as  that  of  Lightning.  —  Compared  to  Wireless 
Telegraphy.  —  The  Objective  Existence  of  Ideas.  —  The 
Psychic  Image  apparently  independent  of  Space  and  Time. 


CHAPTER  XII 
An  Examination  of  the  Proposed  Hypothesis    .    .    350 

Impossibility  of  finding  a  Single  Solution  applicable  to  every 
Mcdiumistic  Phenomenon.  —  The  Theory  that  the  Medium's 
Personality  is  doubled.  —  Dr.  Grasset's  Exposition  of  this 
Theory.  —  The  Particular  Part  of  the  Brain  occupied  by  the 
Conscious  Ego. —  Other  Brain  Centres.  —  The  Double  Per- 
sonality of  the  Medium  conceived  as  a  Result  of  Independent 
Action  of  the  Brain  Centres  and  a  Splitting  of  the  Etheric 
Body.  —  The  Ego's  Resistance  to  Suggestion  an  Argument  in 
Favour  of  a  Voluntary  Element  in  the  Soul.  —  Annihilation 
of  the  Will  under  Hypnosis.  —  Characteristics  of  Double  Per- 
sonality. —  Dr.  Grasset's  Theory  as  applied  to  Telepathy.  — 
Consciousness  relatively  independent  of  the  Ego.  —  The 
Medium's  "  Guiding-Spirit  "  his  own  Personality.  —  Thought- 
reading.  —  Hypotheses  founded  on  the  Idea  of  the  Inter- 
position of  Discamate  Souls.  —  Difficulty  of  proving  the 
Authenticity  of  Spiritistic  Communications.  —  Tests  applied 
by  Members  of  the  Society  for  Psychical  Research.  —  Insig- 
nificance of  Revelations  supposed  to  be  made  by  Spirits. 

CONCLUSIONS 366 

Evidences  of  Future  Life  found  in  both  Science  and  Tradition. 
—  Traces  of  this  Belief  found  in  Ancient  Monuments,  Laws, 
and  Customs.  —  Its  Value  in  quickening  Man's  Higher  In- 


CONTENTS 

stincts. —  Man's  Unwillingness  to  believe  in  Absolute  Extinc- 
tion. —  Light  thrown  by  Astronomy  upon  the  History  of  the 
Universe.  —  Science  as  an  Aid  to  Philosophy.  —  Indestructi- 
bility of  Matter  and  Force.  —  Applicability  of  this  Law  to 
Past  Events  and  to  Thought.  —  Ether  the  Medium  of  Action 
for  All  Forces.  —  The  Hypothesis  of  Ether  necessary  to  the 
Explanation  of  Material  Phenomena,  and  perhaps  of  Life.  — 
Phenomena  connected  with  the  Astral  Body,  —  Unreliability 
of  Mediumistic  Communications.  —  The  Existence  of  an' 
Immaterial  Element  in  Man  a  Matter  of  Hypothesis,  as  with 
Ether.  —  Probability  that  Consciousness  is  transformed,  if 
not  destroyed,  by  Death.  —  Moral  Attainments  of  this  Life 
probably  conserved  in  the  Next.  —  The  Astral  Body  probably 
the  Medium  of  Feeling  in  the  Life  to  come.  —  Inability  of 
Science  to  throw  Light  upon  our  Condition  after  Death.  — 
Revelation  of  Man's  Likeness  to  the  Divine  Trinity.  —  De- 
pendence of  Souls  in  Purgatory  upon  the  Prayers  of  the 
Living,  or  else  on  Reincarnation.  —  Difficulties  in  the  Way 
of  Belief  in  Reincarnation.  —  Importance  of  clinging  to  the 
Principle  of  Survival,  as  founded  on  both  Science  and 
Tradition. 


INTRODUCTION 

Science  is  available  in  Discussing  the  Survival  of  the  Human  Soul.  — 
The  Existence  of  the  Soul  not  a  Question  of  Metaphysics.  —  Phi- 
losophers of  the  Present  Day  have  supplied  Matter  for  the  Inquiry. 
—  The  Author's  Anonymous  Pamphlet  on  this  Subject.  —  The 
Existence  of  Ether  affirmed  by  Antiquity  and  assumed  by  Scien- 
tists. —  Universal  Belief  that  the  Spirit  is  destined  to  outlive  the 
Body.  —  Ether  found  in  Organic  Life,  and  now  looked  for  in  Con- 
scious Life.  —  We  apply  to  the  Human  Soul  the  Law  of  Inde- 
structibility of  Matter  and  Energy. 

THE  aim  of  the  present  work  is  to  broach 
once  more  the  problem  of  the  survival  of 
the  human  soul.  It  recapitulates  all  that  the 
wisdom  of  the  ancients  and  remote  tradition  have  to 
say  upon  the  subject,  in  order  to  discuss  that  evi- 
dence in  the  light  of  the  theories  put  forward  by 
•modern  science.  Divers  critics  will  no  doubt  con- 
demn such  an  attempt  unheard,  with  the  objection 
that  laws  derived  from  the  observation  of  the  per- 
ceptible world  cannot  be  made  to  serve  as  proof  of 
any  deduction  which  attempts  to  go  beyond  that 
world.  We  opine,  on  the  contrary,  that  at  the  pres- 
ent day  any  such  discussion  would  be  devoid  of  all 
authority  unless  it  had,  in  so  far  as  possible,  under- 
gone the  preliminary  test  of  positive  science,  seeing 
that  this  latter  has  become  for  us  the  one  and  only 
source  of  uncontested  truth. 

In  the  midst  of  the  enthusiasm  which  the  marvel- 
lous discoveries  witnessed  by  us  have  evoked,  our 
contemporaries  have  come  to,  discard  all  faith  except 


xxiv  INTRODUCTION 

that  based  on  material  science;  and  as  the  majority 
of  them  are  entirely  uriable  to  verify  for  themselves 
the  exactness  of  the  principles  which  it  teaches,  the 
French  Academy  of  Sciences  has,  to  use  a  famous 
expression,  acquired,  in  their  opinion,  all  that  moral 
authority  which  the  canons  of  religious  faith  pos- 
sessed over  the  minds  of  our  forefathers. 

Through  the  exaggerated  application  of  a  principle 
just  in  itself,  they  have  come  to  reject  as  empty  and 
unfounded  affirmations  all  dogmatic  ideas,  and  some- 
times even  all  conceptions  of  moral  duty,  because  in 
their  view  such  ideas  and  conceptions  cannot  be 
directly  connected  with  the  data  of  positive  science.  ^^ 

This  state  of  mind,  nowadays  of  such  common 
occurrence,  certainly  constitutes  the  cause  of  the 
moral  disorder  of  our  times;  and  the  situation  will 
remain  incurable  so  long  as  it  is  not  decided  to  trans- 
fer the  discussion  to  the  only  ground  where  it  is  not 
repudiated  from  the  first,  and  above  all  to  give  it  the 
support  of  the  great  scientific  laws  which  are  to-day 
accepted,  and  of  the  conclusions  deducible  therefrom. 

Let  us  note,  moreover,  that  the  problem  of  the  ex- 
istence of  the  human  soul  is  in  this  aspect  quite  dis- 
tinct from  the  doubtless  unfathomable  speculations 
upon  which  metaphysical  philosophy  spends  itself  in 
vain.  It  is  practically  alone  in  being  with  advantage 
amenable  to  experimental  investigation,  and  it  is, 
besides,  as  we  shall  see  hereafter,  closely  related  to  all 
the  theoretical  conceptions  nowadays  held  by  science 
with  respect  to  the  material  world,  the  manifestations 
of  which  it  studies. 

Hardly  need  we  add  that  the  question  of  the  sur- 
vival of  the  soul  is  of  urgent  interest  to  each  one  of 


INTRODUCTION  xxv 

us,  since  it  strives  to  discover  the  nature  of  the 
dread  unknown  which  awaits  us  all  when  we  shall 
have  paid  death's  inevitable  toll.  This  explains  the 
eager,  restless  excitement  with  which  the  problem  is 
now  being  discussed  from  every  available  point  of 
view. 

Were  it  permissible  to  cite  ^he  experience  of  daily 
life  where  a  question  of  eternity  is  concerned,  we 
should  be  disposed  to  say  that  this  question  possesses 
the  world  to-day  in  a  very  striking  degree,  and  a 
whole  library  might  be  made  up  of  the  publications 
to  which  it  has  given  rise  within  the  last  few  years 
alone. 

In  their  attempt  to  grapple  with  this  mystery  which 
always  eludes  them,  philosophers  (religious  apolo- 
gists and  scientists  alike)  have  at  all  events  clearly 
restated  the  elements  of  the  problem;  they  have  given 
us  new  insight,  brought  facts  into  unexpected  juxta- 
position, and  furnished  us  with  startling  observations, 
all  this  supplying  matter  for  the  inquiry  which  is  still 
pendent. 

For  humanity,  too,  it  is  an  all-important  question. 
Do  what  we  will,  it  forces  itself  upon  us,  and  positive 
science  is  incapable  of  solving  it.  Yet  positive  science 
may  at  any  rate  assist  in  shedding  light  upon  the 
solution,  and  we  should  enter  upon  our  inquiry  with 
all  the  resources  which  are  thus  afforded  us.  This  is 
the  task  which  we  have  undertaken  in  the  present 
book;  for  we  endeavour  to  show  that  the  idea  of  a 
survival  follows,  by  what  appears  to  us  a  necessary 
sequence  of  argument,  upon  scientific  laws  accepted 
at  the  present  day. 

In  an  anonymous  booklet  which  we  published  in 


XXVI 


INTRODUCTION 


1896  *  upon  this  same  matter,  we  sketched  the  per- 
haps somewhat  novel  point  of  view  which  has  guided 
us ;  and  the  remarkable  interest  which  was  awakened 
by  that  essay  among  a  select  public,  made  up  of  sci- 
entists, engineers,  and  literary  men  of  high  standing, 
has  induced  us  to  recapitulate  and  expand  it  into  a 
new  work  embracing  the  question  under  its  two  prin- 
cipal aspects,  —  the  past  and  the  present.  We  thus 
investigate  successively  the  doctrines  of  ancient  phi- 
losophies and  of  modern  science. 

In  the  first  part  of  the  book,  the  principal  religious 
customs  and  beliefs  of  the  races  which  peopled  the 
earth  before  us  are  passed  in  review,  and  from  them 
we  seek  to  make  out  the  dim  echo  of  the  common 
faith  of  primitive  man.  At  every  step,  as  will  be 
seen,  we  shall  encounter  among  the  most  divergent 
races  the  constantly  reiterated  assertion  that  there 
exists  in  man's  body  some  subtler  element  destined 
to  outlive  the  physical  organism,  because  it  draws  its 
life  from  an  invisible  world  other  than  that  of  matter. 

The  second  and  last  part  deals  with  positive 
science,  but  a  hard  and  fast  line  is  drawn  between 
the  fundamental  laws  which  it  teaches  and  the  gener- 
ally respected  conceptions  which  it  appears  to  adopt. 
Here  we  shall  find  that  we  are  led  to  admit  the  notion 
of  a  semi-material  element,  the  invisible  ether  which 
is  always  cropping  up  in  every  scientific  theory,  and 
which  so  marvellously  corroborates  what  was  con- 
stantly affirmed  by  antiquity. 

Scientists,  in  explaining  the  slightest  phenomenon, 
suppose  the  intervention  of  an  unknown  fluid;   they 

1  "La  Vie  Future  devant  la  Science,"  Paris,  Librairie  Nouvelle, 
1896. 


INTRODUCTION  xxvii 

now  find  it  in  the  constitution  of  matter  itself  and 
in  the  mode  of  action  of  the  organic  as  well  as  of 
the  physical  forces,  and  we  are  therefore  justified  in 
looking  for  it  in  the  manifestations  of  conscious  life. 

We  discuss  from  this  standpoint  the  wonderful  and 
absorbing  investigations  which  have  become  more  and 
more  numerous  during  these  later  years,  —  investiga- 
tions seeking  to  clear  up  the  vexed  question  of  the 
constitution  of  the  human  soul,  —  and  we  essay  to 
show  that  they  too  can  be  explained  only  by  the  inter- 
vention of  the  mysterious  ether.  Thus  we  recognize 
that  the  notion  of  this  invisible  element  acquires  double 
authority,  first,  as  the  invariable  tradition  of  man- 
kind; secondly,  as  an  induction  based  upon  experi- 
mental observation.  _  ._.^ 

At  the  same  time  we  appeal  to  the  Law  of  Inde-  fu^^ 
structibility,  which  governs  all  the  manifestations  of 
life,  and  we  come  to  the  conclusion  that  conscious ^^^ '  ^ 
force  cannot  perish,  when  we  observe  with  what  un-        jl 
swerving  constancy  this  law  watches  over  the  pres-  \\  rg^ 
ervation  of  the  minutest  material  atom,  and  presides    S — - 
over  the  transmutation  of  energy  and  the  recording 
ol  all  past  events.     In  the  name  of  science  we  are 
therefore  justified   in  retaining  this  uncontroverted 
law  of  indestructibility,  and  we  may  apply  it  to  the 
human  soul  and  endow  that  too  with  the  power  to 
survive. 

Certainly  no  delusive  hope  deceives  us  that  we  shall 
be  able  in  this  book  to  put  forward  a  doctrine  capable 
of  meeting  all  legitimate  objections,  and  of  solving 
the  unfathomable  mystery  of  life.  Too  well  we  know 
that  for  us  absolute  certitude  terminates  with  the 
limits  of  the  perceptible  world,  and  that  in  all  its 


xxviii  INTRODUCTION 

plenitude  it  will  doubtless  never  belong  to  mankind. 
Nevertheless,  v^e  hope  that  our  conclusion  will  be 
admitted  to  possess  probability  of  a  certain  value, 
seeing  that  it  reposes  upon  the  two  greatest  authori- 
ties to  which  man  in  his  present  state  can  appeal,  if 
we  omit  religious  faith,  —  of  which  he  may,  however, 
therein  find  confirmation. 

LOUIS  ELB£. 
Paris,  France. 


PART   ONE 

FUTURE   LIFE  IN   THE  LIGHT   OF   ANCIENT 
WISDOM 


^pS"  ^^:'  -    '''^^     ^t44^C'io<^4 


'/uy  ^' 


FUTURE    LIFE 

IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  ANCIENT  WISDOM 
AND    MODERN   SCIENCE 

PART   ONE 

FUTURE   LIFE  IN   THE  LIGHT   OF   ANCIENT 
WISDOM 

CHAPTER    I 

THE   IDEA   OF    SURVIVAL   IN    THE   VARIOUS 
CIVILISATIONS    OF    ANTIQUITY 

The  Spiritual  Insight  of  the  Ancients.  —  Tradition  and  Primitive  Phi- 
losophy to  be  appealed  to  for  Help  in  understanding  Spiritual 
Matters.  —  Evidences  of  a  Belief  in  Survival  among  Prehis- 
toric Races  and  Modern  Savages.  —  Chinese  Ancestor-worship.  — 
The  Evolution  of  the  Survival  Idea  among  the  Egyptians.  —  Trans- 
migration of  Souls  believed  in,  but  abhorred,  by  the  Hindus. — 
Survival  as  viewed  by  the  Chaldeans,  and  by  the  Gauls. —  Immor- 
tality obscurely  taught  in  the  Old  Testament  —  Taught  also  by  the 
Greeks,  and  for  a  Time  by  the  Romans.  —  The  Christian  Doctrine 
of  Immortality  and  Divine  Love.  —  Disagreement  of  Roman  Cath- 
olics and  Protestants  on  the  Question  of  a  Purgatory. —  Survival  as 
viewed  by  Spiritists,  and  by  Theosophists. 

SIDE  by  side  with  scientific  observation,  which 
carries  with  it  the  conviction  belonging  to 
ascertained  facts,  the  traditions  handed  down 
to  us  by  antiquity  retain  a  species  of  moral  authority 
which  is  also  of  high  importance,  and  in  studying 
the  still  vexed  problem  of  a  future  life  we  can  in 
no  wise  afford  to  neglect  them.  If  we  admit  that 
it   is   possible   to   disentangle   from   them    a    fairly 


4  FUTURE  LIFE 

definite  conception  such  as  might  be  considered,  in 
principle  at  least,  to  epitomise  the  common  faith  of 
widely  divergent  races,  and  thus  to  formulate  the 
permanent  belief  of  mankind,  we  are  bound  to  ac- 
knowledge that  a  general  concurrence  of  this  kind 
tends  to  endow  the  teachings  of  primitive  philosophy 
with  the  authority  of  an  original  revelation,  as  if 
primeval  man  had  been  favoured  with  an  insight 
into  the  problem  of  the  invisible  world  which  we 
cannot  now  regain.  So  indeed  thought  Cicero. 
Undoubtedly,  despite  its  harmonious  agreement,  the 
doctrine  is  not  always  defined  with  equal  precision, 
and  cannot  claim  unrestrained  adhesion  unless  it  find 
at  least  indirect  confirmation  from  the  observation 
of  facts.  This  is  precisely  the  reason  why  in  the 
second  part  of  this  work  we  shall  call  in  the  inter- 
vention of  modern  science  and  shall  ask  in  what 
degree  it  can  extend  the  support  of  its  peculiar 
authority  to  a  theory  it  is  unable  to  verify  directly. 
We  are  not  unaware  that  science  is  still  powerless 
to  subjugate  the  recalcitrant  problem.  It  is  none 
the  less  able  to  supply  us  with  crucial  conceptions 
regarding  points  which  trench  upon  its  sphere,  and 
possibly  it  may  explain  some  of  them. 

To  lay  down  the  limits  of  the  first  portion  of  this 
work:  We  shall  endeavour  to  decipher  the  teaching 
of  primitive  lore,  and  to  this  end  we  shall  examine 
in  succession  such  traditions  as  have  been  bequeathed 
to  us  by  the  various  races  and  civilisations  that  have 
in  turn  embodied  the  beliefs  and  hopes  of  mankind. 

To  begin  with,  in  order  to  follow  the  doctrine 
through  all  its  progressive  stages,  starting,  if  pos- 
sible, from  its  very  birth,  we  shall  attempt  to  go 


SURVIVAL  IN  ANCIENT  CIVILISATIONS      5 

back  to  those  vanished  races  whose  memory  has 
come  down  to  us  solely  by  means  of  a  few  shapeless 
monuments,  such  as  the  cromlechs  and  menhirs.  The 
intention  of  those  monuments  has  been  long  since 
forgotten,  yet  it  is  possible  to  interpret  the  rudimen- 
tary drawings  with  which  they  are  decorated  and 
to  discover  therein  a  clear  moral  design.  This  has 
been  shown  by  M.  E.  Soldi,  the  eminent  archaeolo- 
gist; his  works,  which  abound  in  ingenious  conjec- 
ture, have  been  our  guide  in  the  next  chapter.  He 
has  pointed  out  how  these  clumsily  executed  drawings 
and  rude  characters  invariably  embody  a  principle 
which  we  find  recurring  absolutely  identically  in 
widely  separated  countries.  They  are  for  the  most 
part  an  outcry  against  death,  a  call  to  that  spirit 
of  life  which  shall  one  day  return  to  breathe  a  new 
existence  into  the  corpse  lying  buried  beneath  the 
stone  on  which  they  are  inscribed. 

The  very  same  belief  in  a  survival  which  thus 
prompted  prehistoric  races  is  still  encountered  to-day 
among  wild  tribes  outside  the  pale  of  civilisation. 
They  cannot  acknowledge  that  death  destroys  a 
human  being  entirely;  and  in  the  weirdest  super- 
stitions and  most  savage  customs  it  is  very  nearly 
always  possible,  as  we  shall  see,  to  discern  the  con- 
fstant  purpose  of  satisfying  the  new  requirements  of 
the  soul  when  freed  from  the  physical  body. 

After  having  inquired  into  the  primitive  form  of 
the  notion  of  survival,  and  after  having  noted  it  in 
the  relics  of  prehistoric  peoples  and  uncultured  tribes 
alike,  we  shall  in  the  subsequent  chapters  proceed  to 
examine  the  great  races  who  have  left  an  imprint 
upon  the  history  of  civilisation,  and  we  shall  pass 


6  FUTURE  LIFE 

them  in  review  one  after  another,  with  the  object 
of  discovering  what  were  the  notions  which  they 
held  regarding  a  future  life,  and  the  consequences 
which  these  notions  had  upon  their  public  and  pri- 
vate affairs. 

As  we  follow  up  the  doctrine  through  its  pro- 
gressive stages,  we  come  first  upon  the  Chinese  race, 
the  study  of  which  is  especially  interesting,  seeing 
that  it  furnishes  us  with  the  sole  contemporary  ex- 
ample of  that  organisation  based  on  the  family  which 
characterises  the  societies  of  antiquity. 

The  Chinese  retain  quite  intact  the  ancestor  wor- 
ship which  prevailed  in  the  earlier  development  of  the 
great  historical  civilisations,  after  they  had  once  freed 
themselves  from  the  primitive  worship  of  fetiches. 

In  this  conception,  which  is  found  so  clearly 
marked  among  the  most  dissimilar  races  of  anti- 
quity, the  idea  of  survival  is  accepted  without  dis- 
cussion. At  the  same  time  we  have  to  deal  rather 
with  an  impersonal  existence,  in  which  the  disem- 
bodied entity  becomes  as  it  were  absorbed  by  the 
souls  of  his  forefathers  in  order  to  form  with  them 
a  collective  soul  representative  of  the  family,  much 
in  the  same  way  as  the  species-type  in  the  animal 
kingdom,  if  endowed  with  an  objective  existence, 
would  represent  the  species.  This  conception,  which 
gave  rise  to  the  worship  of  ancestors  who  were 
regarded  as  the  exclusive  tutelaries  of  the  family, 
led,  precisely  for  that  reason,  to  the  creation  of  the 
quite  peculiar  social  institutions  of  antiquity  which 
have  in  some  degree  survived  down  to  the  present 
day.  No  doubt  it  was  gradually  discarded  by  more 
modem  civilisations,  as  they  attained  the  idea  of  an 


SURVIVAL  IN  ANCIENT  CIVILISATIONS      7 

inevitable  reward  awaiting  the  acts  of  our  present 
existence,  in  conformity  with  the  doctrine  of  metem- 
psychosis, and  above  all,  with  that  of  conscious  im- 
mortality as  laid  down  by  the  Christian  dogma. 

None  the  less  does  the  notion  of  an  impersonal 
survival  constitute  a  most  important  step  in  the 
evolution  of  the  idea  of  a  future  life,  for  it  has  left 
an  ineffaceable  mark  upon  history ;  and  it  was  fitting 
to  study  it  with  special  care  in  the  only  people  which 
has  preserved  it  intact. 

After  the  somewhat  rudimentary  conceptions  of 
the  Chinese  we  touch  in  the  succeeding  chapter  upon 
the  tenets  of  the  Egyptians.  These,  on  the  other  hand, 
attest  profound  knowledge,  for  we  find  in  them  the 
most  precise  assertions  with  regard  to  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  human  soul  and  its  future  destinies.  We 
also  note  the  dawn  of  that  faith  in  the  transmigra- 
tion of  souls  which  is  common  to  the  whole  of  an- 
tiquity and  is  yet  accepted  by  the  vast  majority  of 
mankind.  Egypt  has  been  rightly  regarded  as  the 
true  civiliser  of  other  nations,  and  did  we  but  pos- 
sess complete  the  doctrine  of  its  mysteries,  it  is  no 
doubt  to  Egypt  that  we  should  have  to  look  for  the 
precise  formulation  of  ancient  belief.  Unhappily 
we  are  denied  that  knowledge,  and  it  remains  im- 
possible to  us  to  explain  in  any  degree  to  our  sat- 
isfaction certain  strange  characteristics  which  seem 
to  clash  entirely  with  the  lofty  wisdom  of  which 
Egyptian  religion  gives,  in  other  respects,  so  many 
proofs. 

The  Hindus,  to  whom  we  next  pass,  have  a  dis- 
tinct leaning  toward  a  species  of  shadowy  meta- 
physics which  lends  itself  to  many  often  contradictory 


8  FUTURE  LIFE 

interpretations,  and  between  which  it  is  not  always 
easy  to  pick  and  choose.  They  are,  however,  unani- 
mous in  asserting  a  survival  of  some  kind,  whatever 
may  be  the  particular  philosophical  system  to  which 
they  are  allied.  The  Hindus  are  at  one  with  the 
Egyptians  in  their  conception  of  the  soul  as  a 
complex  whole  formed  by  the  union  round  a  single 
element  of  relatively  independent  envelopes.  They 
likewise  accept  the  theory  of  the  transmigration  of 
souls,  which  they  extend  to  all  animate  objects. 

This  idea,  •  which  lies  at  the  root  of  all  Hindu 
theories,  entirely  predominates  in  all  their  schools 
of  philosophy  and  religion,  which  look  upon  reem- 
bodiment  in  a  sentient  existence  as  an  evil  to  be 
evaded  at  all  costs;  in  their  one  desire  to  escape 
from  it,  they  have  gone  so  far  as  to  recommend  a 
life  of  purely  meditative  asceticism,  deeming  that  all 
activity,  good  or  bad,  is  in  itself  an  evil,  since  it  is 
a  sign  of  our  attachment  to  the  present  life,  and 
thus  lengthening  the  duration  of  the  cycle  of  fate 
from  which  we  must  of  necessity  escape  in  order  to 
attain  true  beatitude  in  the  semi-annihilation  of 
Nirvana. 

From  the  Hindus  we  pass  to  the  Chaldeans,  whose 
history  is  being  constantly  carried  farther  back  into 
the  ages  and  is  thus  acquiring  a  steady  increase  of 
authority.  Unfortunately,  neither  has  the  teaching 
of  the  magi  of  Chaldea  reached  us  in  its  entirety, 
but  the  documents  which  have  come  down  to  us  are 
enough  to  enable  us  to  declare  that  it,  too,  was 
founded  upon  the  idea  of  survival,  better  inter- 
preted, perhaps,  than  it  had  been  by  Egyptian  doc- 
trine, because  it  was  always  divested  of  those  crude 


SURVIVAL  IN  ANCIENT  CIVILISATIONS      9 

observances  from  which  Egypt  was  never  free. 
Consequently  it  is  in  Chaldea  above  all  that  we 
should  seek  the  noblest  and  purest  expression  of  the, 
wisdom  of  ancient  times. 

Next  we  treat  of  the  Gauls,  who  are  connected 
with  the  Chaldeans  by  a  number  of  most  astonish- 
ing analogies,  and  who  likewise  appear  to  have 
caught  the  true  echo  of  primitive  belief.  The 
thought  of-  a  future  existence  and  of  the  transmi- 
gration of  souls  permeated  their  life  throughout  and 
governed  their  actions.  Far,  however,  from  deduc- 
ing therefrom,  as  did  the  Hindus,  the  bitter  feeling 
of  the  vanity  of  all  activity  and  pessimistic  views, 
they  drew  from  it,  on  the  contrary,  the  idea  of 
courage  and  self-sacrifice,  deeming  that  the  practice 
of  righteousness  and  heroic  virtues  was  the  most 
ready  means  of  entering  upon  the  path  of  perfec- 
tion and  of  earning  an  escape  from  the  law  of 
transmigration. 

The  Jews  received  the  revelation  of  Divine  unity, 
w^hich  gave  them  historically  exceptional  authority 
among  the  ancient  peoples.  On  the  other  hand,  they 
could  never  rise,  at  least  in  their  public  teaching, 
above  the  crude  material  conceptions  of  a  survival, 
such  as  belong  to  primitive  tribes.  Their  great  legis- 
lator, brought  up  in  the  school  of  the  Egyptian 
priests,  was  certainly  acquainted  with  the  secret 
tenets  of  ancient  lore,  and  we  may,  in  fact,  trace, 
in  certain  passages  of  the  Bible,  the  Egyptian  idea 
as  to  the  complexity  of  the  human  soul.  However, 
Moses  no  doubt  judged  that  the  stiff-necked  race  of 
Jews,  to  use  the  Scriptual  expression,  so  often  dis- 
obedient to  the  word  of  Jehovah,  was  far  too  deeply 


10  FUTURE  LIFE 

immersed  in  the  material  delights  of  the  present  life 
to  be  able  to  soar  to  this  exalted  spiritual  knowledge. 
He,  therefore,  partly  veiled  his  statement  of  doctrine, 
reserving  it  for  the  initiated  alone,  and  it  is  impos- 
sible to  disentangle  it  from  the  text  of  the  holy 
Book  without  having  recourse  to  an  interpretation 
liable  to  disputes.  It  must  be  acknowledged  that  if 
the  Bible  does  from  time  to  time  affirm  immortality, 
it  is  principally  in  certain  books  which  came  under 
foreign  influence,  namely.  Job  and  Maccabees.  We ! 
do,  however,  encounter  the  affirmation  in  the  Cabala, 
where  it  is  presented  in  a  form  which  brings  it  into 
yet  closer  relation  with  the  conceptions  of  the  ancient 
Egyptians  and  the  Chaldean  magi. 

The  Greeks  also  were  acquainted  with  the  notion 
of  a  survival,  albeit  they  did  not,  like  the  Gauls, 
make  it  the  exclusive  ground  for  their  acts.  It  is 
to  be  met  with  in  the  legendary  tales  which  appear 
at  the  dawn  of  the  history  of  the  city  States,  and  it 
formed  the  basis  of  the  mysteries.  Moreover,  it  was 
enunciated  by  the  great  Hellenic  philosophers,  who 
taught  it  to  mankind,  and  it  is  from  them  that  we  bor- 
row justificatory  arguments  even  to  the  present  day. 

The  Romans,  who  from  their  standpoint  are  akin 
to  the  Chinese,  also  present  us  with  a  social  State 
originally  based  exclusively  on  the  idea  of  survival,, 
which,  however,  subsequently  vanished  by  degrees 
from  their  thoughts.  For  the  most  part  they  did 
not  go  beyond  a  somewhat  crude  and  primitive 
conception  of  the  collective  existence  of  impersonal 
souls.  They  never  sought  to  support  their  notion 
of  a  future  life  by  making  it  part  of  the  general 
harmony  of  the  universe,  or  in  placing  therein  the 


SURVIVAL  IN  ANCIENT  CIVILISATIONS    11 

necessary  reward  of  the  acts  of  our  present  exist- 
ence. Gradually,  as  the  recollection  of  their  origin 
disappeared,  they  abandoned  the  conception,  and  in 
the  works  of  their  philosophers  the  thought  of  im- 
mortality appears  rather  as  a  pious  longing  of  the 
imagination  devoid  of  sufficient  support  in  the  reahty 
of  fact. 

Illumined  by  the  new  revelation  disclosed  by  the 
Divine  Founder  of  Christianity,  his  disciples  espoused 
the  faith  in  personal  immortality  with  all  the  un-  '''^^'^ 
shaken  conviction  which  had  marked  the  Gauls,  and  ^^^ 
they  at  the  same  time  completed  it  with  that  notion    ^^^y>>rt 
of  a  divine  love,  charity,  and  devotion  which  antiq-,j^/v^ 
uity   had   not   known   and    which   was    destined    to       "^ 
change  the  face  of  the  world.     They  idealised  the^^^,..^ 
4^  //belief  in  survival  by  showing  that  it  was  to  be,  above  ^r-f"^ 

'^       all,  immaterial,  and  that  the  felicity  to  be  hoped  for  i. 

jy      Iwas  to  be  sought  in  the  contemplation  of  the  infinite        ^4^ 
*    iperfections  of  the  Deity.     Under  certain  aspects  this         -  < 

'^  ^  was  no  doubt  the  same  doctrine  of  the  return  of  the 
^il^  human  soul  into  the  bosom  of  Eternal  God  which 

'  antiquity  had   already   inculcated,   but   it   was   com- 

pletely transformed  by  the  new  thought  of  the  super- 
natural powers  of  charity  and  love. 

At  the  same  time  Catholic  dogma  gave  precision 
to  the  future  existence  by  showing  how  in  the  op- 
posite terms  of  the  broad  dilemma,  heaven  and  hell, 
the  acts  of  mortal  life  would  receive  their  inevitable 
and  merited  reward;  the  idea  of  a  purgatory  was 
moreover  introduced,  forming  an  obligatory  limbo 
in  which  were  confined  souls  not  yet  sufficiently 
purified  or  worthy  of  sharing  in  the  celestial  felicity. 
This  doctrine  of  an  intermediate  world  gave  a  new 


12  FUTURE  LIFE 

complexion  to  the  harmony  of  the  divine  plan,  and 
also  allowed  of  our  understanding  the  beneficial  effect 
of  prayer,  which  is  the  agency  by  which  communion 
is  maintained  between  the  souls  of  the  righteous  in 
the  three  successive  stages,  in  Heaven,  on  Earth  and 
in  Purgatory. 

The  prayers  and  sacrifices  of  the  Church  militant 
pave  the  way  for  the  salvation  of  the  suffering 
Church  and  call  down  upon  us  the  grace  and  favour 
which  the  Church  triumphant  is  able  to  dispense. 

In  contradistinction  to  the  ancient  religions,  which 
had  recourse  to  material  sacrifices  in  order  to  main- 
tain the  vegetative  existence  of  the  souls  of  the 
deceased  in  the  yonder-world,  Christianity  endeavours 
to  open  for  them  a  life  of  blessedness  by  means  of 
the  infinite  merit  of  the  Saviour;  and  instead  of 
invoking  their  succour  in  the  present  life,  it  prays 
for  them  in  the  other. 

Despite  the  lofty  moral  and  religious  significance 
attaching  to  the  dogma  of  purgatory,  the  Protestant 
churches  refused  it  their  assent,  alleging  that  it  was 
not  provided  for  in  the  eschatology  of  the  Gospels, 
and  they  confined  themselves  to  the  simple  opposition 
of  heaven  and  hell,  without  regard  to  the  fact  that 
they  were  thus  delivering  into  everlasting  damnation 
the  majority  of  men,  who  pass  to  death  insufficiently 
purified  for  heaven.  This  conclusion  appears  to  be 
nowadays  unacceptable,  and  the  greater  part  of  the 
Protestant  creeds  endeavour  to  mitigate  it  by  a  return 
under  various  guises  to  some  middle  solution  analo- 
gous to  that  of  purgatory.  It  is  not  our  business 
to  press  these  doctrines  home,  but  in  a  special  chap- 
ter we  shall  refer  to  that  of  conditional  immortality. 


SURVIVAL  IN  ANCIENT  CIVILISATIONS    13 

which  constitutes  a  fresh  and  particularly  original 
solution.  It  was  at  first  much  disputed,  but  is  now 
fervently  adopted  in  Protestant  communities. 

We  next  examine  with  great  care  two  other  theo- 
ries which  are  not  related  to  any  definite  dogmas  but 
are  rather  connected  with  the  teachings  of  ancient 
belief  as  we  have  endeavoured  to  determine  it.  These 
theories  are  spiritism  and  theosophy. 

The  spiritistic  doctrine  may  be  summed  up  as  fol- 
lows. When  the  disembodied  soul  of  man  reaches 
the  world  beyond,  it  still  retains  the  memory  of 
worldly  cares,  and  henceforth,  by  means  of  the  fluid- 
like envelope  with  which  it  is  surrounded,  it  is 
enabled  to  give  rise  to  material  manifestations  affect- 
ing some  one  of  our  senses.  It  is,  however,  neces- 
sary that  for  this  purpose  certain  subjects  gifted 
with  an  appropriate  organisation  should  be  used  as 
intermediaries ;  these  subjects  are  known  as  mediums. 
They  act  in  unconsciously  supplying  the  disembodied 
spirit  with  that  vital  fluid  and  even  the  physical 
organ  which  it  requires,  and  in  such  a  manner  that, 
so  long  as  the  communication  lasts,  that  organ  is  no 
longer  under  the  control  of  the  medium  himself,  but 
y       of  a  foreign  personality  taking  the  place  of  his. 

This  newreligion,  which  claims  to  demonstrate  by 
fV^ experiment  the  survival  of  the  soul,  has  not  so  far 
"^^^  succeeded  in  formulating  any  doctrine  with  regard 
to  a  future  life  which  is  universally  accepted  by  the 
various  sects  to  which  it  has  already  given  birth ;  but 
it  may  be  stated  that  in  general  nearly  all  of  these 
admit  the  dogma  of  successive  reincarnations  as  laid 
down  by  antiquity. 

Theosophy,  ^  on  the  other  hand,   puts  forward  a 


14  FUTURE  LIFE 

distinct  theory  which,  though  it  cannot  pretend  to 
challenge  all  objection,  nevertheless  embodies  in  a 
complete  and  homogeneous  doctrine  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  solutions  of  the  problem  of  the  consti- 
tution of  the  human  soul.  The  soul  is  viewed  as 
a  complex  whole  in  which  several  semi-fluid  bodies 
of  greater  or  less  rarefaction  surround  a  central  ego. 
Each  of  these  is  destined  to  enjoy  its  own  individual 
existence  in  appropriate  surroundings.  Theosophy 
thus  reduces  the  actual  personality  of  the  human 
being  to  the  level  of  a  mere  ephemeral  accident  amid 
the  continuous  modes  of  an  endless  existence,  and 
in  so  doing  has  certainly  incurred  objections  and 
dislike;  these  are  justified,  because  all  experimental 
verification  is  systematically  contemned,  while  the 
charming  simplicity  which  our  forefathers  so  much 
-admired  in  the  Christian  dogma  is  completely  lost. 

It  must,  however,  be  allowed  that  theosophy  in 
many  respects  expands  rather  than  combats  the 
dogma,  and  for  the  most  part  does  little  more  than 
furbish  up  anew  what  was  inculcated  by  ancient  lore. 
If  at  times  there  is  a  departure  from  simplicity,  this 
may  be  perhaps  necessitated  by  the  infinite  complex- 
ity of  things;  and  it  may  be  added  that,  from  the 
scientific  standpoint,  the  latest  theories  regarding  the 
part  played  by  the  ether  in  the  manifestations  of 
energy  and  matter  are  of  a  nature,  as  we  shall  ob- 
serve later,  to  strengthen  the  theosophical  views  in 
a  manner  which  cannot  be  overlooked. 


CHAPTER    II 

PREHISTORIC  TRADITIONS  AND  REMAINS 

Primitive  Funeral  Rites  as  Evidence  of  Belief  in  Survival.  —  Evolution 
of  the  Idea  of  Future  Rewards  and  Punishments.  — Influence  of  this 
Belief  on  Laws  and  Customs.  —  Customs  which  show  that  the  Soul 
was  believed  to  be  entombed  with  the  Body.  —  The  Importance 
ascribed  to  Burial  Rites.  —  Manes  and  Penates. —  In  the  Stone  Age, 
Resurrection  regarded  as  a  New  Birth.  —  Drawings  on  Prehistoric 
Tombs,  expressive  of  the  Hope  of  Resurrection.  —  The  Sun  re- 
garded as  the  Author  of  All  Life.  —  Symbolical  Ornamentation  of 
Tombs  in  Egypt  and  Greece.  —  Summary  of  M.  Soldi's  Ideas  on 
Prehistoric  Monuments.  —  A  Forecast  of  the  ModernTheory  of  a 
Vibrating  Etheric  Fluid. 

IN  the  most  remote  ages  and  among  civilisations 
absolutely  dissimilar  appears  the  belief  in  the 
survival  of  the  soul.  Primitive  men,  yielding  as 
it  were  to  a  resistless  impulse,  imagined,  without 
exception,  that  death  does  not  destroy  the  human 
being  in  his  entirety,  but  allows  a  more  or  less  con- 
scious element  to  survive,  still  perhaps  in  close  con- 
nection with  the  physical  body,  and  able  to  exert  a 
personal  influence  over  the  dead,  and  even  upon  the 
living. 

This  conviction  dictated  in  the  first  place  funeral 
rites,  which  for  the  most  part  consisted  in  ceremonial 
incantations  aiming  at  rendering  the  passing  of  the 
soul  of  the  deceased  into  the  world  beyond  more  easy 
by  the  removal  of  obstacles,  and  thus  assisting  it  to 
obtain  some  kind  of  happiness.  At  the  same  time, 
these  ceremonies  helped  to  maintain  the  subsistence 


16  FUTURE  LIFE 

of  the  disembodied  soul.  By  virtue  of  hallowed  sac- 
rifices, and  above  all,  by  the  offering  of  victuals 
whose  smell  and  savour  attract  the  volatile  phantom 
with  which  the  soul  is  henceforward  wrapped  about; 
and  by  the  outpouring  of  newly  shed  human  blood 
upon  common  salt,  which  sets  free  in  it  the  vital 
principle,  —  the  ever  drooping  life  of  the  spirit  is 
strengthened  and  endued  with  fresh  vigour. 

Such  notions  of  a  life  beyond  the  grave  were  cer- 
tainly as  indefinite  as  they  still  are  to-day.  In  the 
first  place,  as  primitive  races  believed,  the  surviving 
firinciple  is  supposed  to  remain  confined  in  the  grave 
beside  the  corpse,  which  it  no  longer  animates,  and  it 
is  imagined  to  retain  a  semi-material  existence  en- 
tailing physical  wants  akin  to  those  of  the  living, 
notably  the  desire  of  food.  Later,  the  mind  of  man 
rises  to  a  conception  less  purely  material,  and  the  souls 
of  the  dead  are  imagined  as  being  able  to  partially 
leave  the  tomb  and  congregate  in  a  place  of  their  own, 
where  they  pursue  the  occupations  of  physical  life. 
Still  later  the  idea  arose  that  this  new  existence  must 
be  influenced  by  the  deeds  of  the  present  life,  for  which 
it  is  either  the  reward  or  the  punishment.  Two  soul- 
places  are  then  distinguishable,  Tartarus  and  the 
Elysian  Fields,  the  one  a  place  of  torment  for  the 
souls  of  transgressors,  the  other  of  happiness  for 
the  souls  of  the  righteous. 

This  last  conception,  which  belongs  to  an  already 
advanced  epoch  of  humanity,  is  that  most  frequently 
occurring  in  ancient  literature,  and  we  shall  meet 
with  it  in  varying  forms  in  the  course  of  the  brief 
analysis  filling  the  next  few  chapters. 

It  would  at  the  first  seem  to  be  impossible  for  us  to 


PREHISTORIC  TRADITIONS  AND  REMAINS    17 

advance  anything  precise  concerning  the  hypotheses 
which  preceded  it  in  the  mind  of  prehistoric  peoples, 
seeing  that  they  have  left  us,  so  to  speak,  no  written 
record.  Yet  it  must  be  remarked  that  these  early 
beliefs  exercised  a  preponderant  influence  upon  the 
evolution  of  mankind.  They  have  left  deep  traces, 
not  only  upon  burial  customs,  but  also  upon  almost 
all  the  phases  of  civilisation.  They  have  even  inspired 
laws  and  customs  which  have  survived  to  our  own  day, 
although  our  ancestors  had  already  long  forgotten  the 
prime  motive.  But  the  formula  still  remains,  pre- 
served by  tradition,  and  it  is  yet  possible  to  disen- 
tangle the  unremembered  meaning. 

As  Fustel  de  Coulanges  has  shown  in  his  interest- 
ing study,  "  La  Cite  Antique,"  the  history  and  the 
civilisation  of  Indo-European  peoples  find  their  ex- 
planation in  the  primitive  conception  formed  by  our 
earliest  ancestors,  the  Aryans,  concerning  a  future 
life;  and  this  same  conception  has  swayed  other 
races,  such  as  the  Chinese,  who  appear  to  have  re- 
tained it  down  to  the  present  time. 

"  If  we  go  back  to  the  earliest  ages  of  the  Indo- 
European  race,  that  is,  to  the  time  when  it  first 
founded  its  institutions,  and  if  we  note  the  idea  which 
they  had  of  the  constitution  of  man  as  well  as  of  life 
and  death,"  remarks  Fustel  de  Coulanges,  "  we  per- 
ceive an  intimate  connection  between  those  principles 
and  the  rules  of  ancient  private  law,  between  the  rites 
originating  from  those  beliefs  and  the  political  insti- 
tutions themselves."  Thus  is  exhibited  in  a  most 
striking  manner  the  all-important  influence  exerted  by 
the  idea  of  future  life  upon  the  history  of  mankind. 

In  the  mind  of  primitive  races  the  discarnate  soul 


18  FUTURE  LIFE 

actually  retains  an  independent  semi-conscious  exist- 
ence, but  for  all  that  it  is  unable  to  dissever  itself  from 
the  physical  body,  with  which  it  remains  confined  in 
.the  tomb.  It  is  for  the  most  part  regarded  as  being 
identical  with  that  intangible  shadow  which  accom- 
panies all  living  beings  and  material  objects ;  and  we 
know,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  that  the  religious  obser- 
vances of  certain  primitive  peoples  invested  the  shadow 
of  their  sacred  monuments  with  especial  sanctity. 

The  laws  of  Manu  go  so  far  as  to  declare  that  the 
shadow  of  an  unclean  man  or  animal  is  enough  to 
defile  the  sacrifice  of  a  man  that  is  pure. 

All  the  ceremonies  of  burial  are  derived  from  the 
belief  that  this  impalpable  shadow  survives,  a  belief 
which  we  find  explicitly  stated  by  the  classical  poets, 
such  as  Virgil  and  Ovid,  when  describing  the  funerals 
of  heroes.  At  the  close  of  the  ceremony  the  soul  of 
the  deceased  was  called  upon  three  times,  and  the  wish 
was  expressed  that  it  might  be  happy  in  the  grave. 
"  May  the  earth  be  light  upon  thee  "  was  the  prayer 
of  our  earliest  forefathers ;  and  even  in  our  time,  for 
all  that  we  no  longer  regard  the  tomb  as  the  dwelling- 
place  of  the  departed  spirit,  we  nevertheless  by  a  sort 
of  unconscious  reminiscence,  always  wish  it  may  rest 
there  in  peace. 

If  the  invisible  being  thus  remains  present,  still  par- 
tially preserving  the  cravings  of  material  life,  it  is  the 
imperative  duty  of  the  living  to  satisfy  these  cravings ; 
our  early  ancestors  consequently  arrived  at  the  idea 
of  burying  with  the  deceased  the  objects  most  useful 
in  life,  such  as  food  and  clothing. 

Hunting  and  warlike  folk  even  made  provision  for 
the  fights  and  struggles  which  might  be  encountered 


PREHISTORIC  TRADITIONS  AND  REMAINS    19 

in  the  other  world;  they  added  the  dead  man's 
weapons,  his  arrows  and  his  javehns,  and  occasionally 
they  sacrificed  his  favourite  steed.  In  the  case  of  a 
powerful  chieftain,  a  number  of  his  comrades  in  arms 
and  some  of  his  wives  were  immolated  on  his  grave, 
in  order  to  form  an  escort  in  the  future  world  and  to 
minister  to  his  pleasures.  After  the  sack  of  Troy 
each  of  the  Greek  heroes,  as  his  share  of  the  booty,  led 
away  a  fair  captive.  But  Achilles  was  not  forgotten 
in  his  grave,  and  for  him  was  slain  Polyxena,  as  his 
allotted  share. 

The  peoples  of  the  Far  East  practised  similar  cus- 
toms in  antiquity,  and  we  find  them  recorded  in  the 
annals  of  the  Japanese. 

Thus  the  grave  becomes  the  eternal  resting-place  in 
which  the  disembodied  soul  finds  repose;  burial  comes 
to  form  one  of  man's  primordial  necessities,  and  to  be 
deprived  of  it  is  the  greatest  misfortune,  the  most 
terrible  punishment  which  can  befall  him.  His  soul 
is  then  without  place  of  sojourn  and  is  condemned  to 
wander  through  the  great  beyond,  an  aimless  outcast, 
suffering  the  torments  of  unappeased  desires,  and  con- 
sequently becoming  rapidly  noxious  to  the  living. 

We  meet  among  ancient  authors  with  numberless 
passages  attesting  the  prime  importance  unanimously 
ascribed  to  the  performance  of  the  burial  rites.  The 
shades  which  appear  in  the  world  of  sense  are  almost 
invariably  goaded  by  the  craving  for  sepulture,  or  by 
the  desire  that  their  manes  should  be  deposited  in  the 
family  graves  if  they  had  not  as  yet  been  laid  there. 
For  there  alone  could  they  find  perfect  peace,  the  goal 
of  their  yearning ;  there  in  the  midst  of  the  forefathers 
whom  they  had  honoured  during  their  sojourn  upon 


20  FUTURE  LIFE 

earth,  there  alone  could  they  receive  offerings  and 
sacrifices  from  the  quick.  This  is  a  feeling  still  to  be 
remarked  among  the  Chinese,  among  whom  is  yet 
retained  that  organisation  according  to  family,  which 
is  the  necessary  outcome  of  early  beliefs  concerning 
survival.  The  manes  in  receipt  of  the  offerings  of  the 
living  rapidly  became  the  gods  of  the  family,  com- 
pelled to  protect  it,  seeing  that  they  drew  as  it  were 
their  livelihood  from  the  sacrifices  which  it  was  not 
permissible  for  the  living  to  omit.  They  were  at  the 
same  time  bound  up  with  the  family  in  the  most  inti- 
mate manner,  participating  in  its  joys  and  its  sor- 
rows, compelled  to  defend  it  at  all  hazards  from 
external  oppression,  whatever  might  be  its  pretext. 
Henceforth  they  are  exclusive  gods,  who  cannot  with- 
hold from  the  service  of  the  family  that  superior 
power  which  they  wield.  If  the  family  should  be 
forced  to  quit  the  home  of  its  fathers,  the  gods  will 
go  with  it,  although  such  an  emigration  would  con- 
stitute a  calamity  not  even  to  be  thought  of.  They 
are  tied  down  to  the  soil,  which  is  family  property 
and  cannot  be  violated  without  great  sacrilege,  or 
alienated  even  by  the  head  of  the  clan. 

By  the  side  of  the  tomb,  where  dwell  unendingly  the 
dead,  is  planted  the  hearth-stone,  around  which  dwell 
the  living.  There,  too,  dwell  the  tutelary  deities  of 
the  family,  who  make  themselves  manifest  upon  the 
hearth  in  the  bright  flames  leaping  heavenwards  as 
they  rise  from  the  glowing  embers,  when  the  fire  is 
kindled  according  to  the  hallowed  rites.  These  gods 
are  the  penates  who  blend  with  the  manes.  They  thus 
unite  under  their  befriending  guardianship  the  two 
fundamental  symbols,  tomb  and  hearth,  which,  thanks 


PREHISTORIC  TRADITIONS  AND  REMAINS    21 

to  them,  become  the  collective  inalienable  property  of 
the  whole  family,  viewed  not  only  in  its  departed 
members,  but  also  in  those  to  come. 

On  the  hearth,  as  in  the  grave,  penates  and  manes 
require  ritual  offerings,  which  are  performed  by  the 
head  of  the  family,  who  is  alone  competent  to  act  as 
intermediary.  In  the  societies  of  antiquity  he  is  found 
clothed  with  a  religious  dignity,  which  is  the  source 
of  the  sovereign  prerogatives  that  he  enjoys  among 
his  own.  In  speaking  later  of  the  Romans  we  shall 
show  some  of  the  results  upon  primitive  law  and  upon 
the  organisation  of  the  city. 

If  we  recollect  that  the  privilege  of  doing  sacrifice 
descended  only  to  male  children,  we  immediately  un- 
derstand how  essential  it  was  for  every  man  to  leave 
behind  him  a  son  who  should  ensure  the  uninterrupted 
continuity  of  the  sacred  offerings,  thus  maintaining 
the  life  of  the  soul  in  the  world  beyond.  This  senti- 
ment, which  has  left  so  deep  a  trace  upon  the  laws  and 
manners  of  antiquity,  recurs  among  the  Chinese  of 
to-day. 

We  may  judge  how  deep  must  have  been  the  im- 
1 1  pression  made  upon  our  forebears  by  the  idea  of  sur- 
\i  vival,  for  it  to  have  left  so  durable  a  trace  ppon  all 
!  historical  civilisations.     To  be  sure,   it  has  left  no 
written  record ;  yet  in  studying  ancient  manners  and 
customs  we  shall  find  it  as  clearly  marked  as  if  it  were 
formally  stated.    We  may  first  of  all  draw  attention  to 
a  custom  universally  respected  among  primitive  races, 
namely,  that  of  burying  a  body  in  the  same  bent-up 
position  as  that  of  the  unborn  foetus.     As  was  re- 
marked by  the  Abbe  Worsinsky  of  Apar  in  Hungar)', 


22  FUTURE  LIFE 

when  delivering  before  the  International  Catholic 
Congress,  in  1901,  a  remarkable  paper  in  which  he 
refers  to  this  peculiar  characteristic  of  the  graves  of 
the  Stone  Age,  this  custom  can  have  been  prompted 
only  by  a  belief  in  a  resurrection.  No  other  thought 
can  have  induced  primitive  man  to  force  a  corpse 
into  an  unnatural  attitude  which  it  was  only  pos- 
sible to  preserve  with  great  difficulty.  They  wished, 
when  intrusting  a  body  tO'  the  earth,  to  show  that 
they  were  replacing  it  in  the  womb  of  mankind's 
universal  mother,  there  to  await  a  new  birth  at  the 
resurrection.  It  is,  as  M.  Troyan  asserts,  a  clear 
instance  of  forethought  for  the  after-world,  and  it 
appears  spontaneously  and  identically  among  various 
races  at  the  beginning  of  their  history. 

But  in  addition  to  this  universal  habit  common  to 
primitive  races,  we  find  other  not  less  striking  evi- 
dence. Thanks  to  the  new  light  thrown  on  the 
subject  through  the  latest  researches  of  archaeol- 
ogists, we  may  to-day  claim  to  possess  as  many 
unfading  testimonies  to  the  idea  of  a  resurrection  as 
there  are  monuments  bequeathed  to  us  by  prehistoric 
generations. 

On  them  are  to  be  traced  drawings  which,  although 
at  the  first  glance  they  appear  to  form  so  many  inde- 
cipherable mysteries,  had  none  the  less  a  very  real  and 
practical  meaning  in  the  minds  of  the  people  who 
made  them ;  and,  though'  in  the  course  of  ages  their 
significance  has  been  lost,  the  combined  researches  of 
men  of  science,  who  have  had  opportunities  of  com- 
paring analogous  pictures  from  quite  different  coun- 
tries, have  already  allowed  us  to  divine  somewhat  of 
their  hidden  sense. 


PREHISTORIC  TRADITIONS  AND  REMAINS    23 

Quite  recently  M.  Emile  Soldi  has  been  able  to 
condense  the  results  thus  obtained,  and  has  succeeded 
in  throwing  a  new  light  upon  the  interpretation  of  the 
primitive  symbols  which  go  to  make  up  what  he  terms 
the  sacred  language.  He  has  shown  that  in  all  proba- 
bility these  pictures,  which  are  generally  to  be  met 
with  upon  gravestones,  were  nearly  always  intended 
to  express  the  idea  of  future  life  or  the  hope  of 
resurrection.  In  their  authors'  minds  they  constituted 
a  prayer  to  the  superior  powers,  an  invocation  to 
which  those  latter  were  bound  to  pay  heed.  It  is  there- 
fore remarkably  interesting  to  meet  the  idea  of  a 
future  life  so  clearly  manifested  even  from  the  earliest 
ages  of  mankind,  and  attested  by  customs,  pictures, 
and  symbols  which  have  come  down  to  us  but  of  which 
we  no  longer  realise  the  significance. 

In  the  interpretation  proposed  by  M.  Soldi,  which 
derives  peculiar  authority  from  the  number  of  in- 
stances upon  which  it  is  based,  the  pictures  delineated 
upon  the  sepulchral  stones,  and  even  the  arrangement 
of  the  articles  placed  around  the  deceased  in  the  tomb 
made  up  a  veritable  inscription  bearing  a  definite 
meaning,  and  sometimes  having  the  effect  of  an  ap- 
peal which  should  procure  resurrection.  The  way 
in  which  the  elements  acted  in  order  to  produce  resus- 
citation was  in  some  degree  represented. 

The  predominant  influence  and  indispensable  ele- 
ment is  the  god  who  is  the  author  of  all  life,  and  who 
is  invariably  represented  as  the  sun,  that  is,  by  the 
characteristic  picture  of  the  circular  disc  fornled  either 
by  a  single  line  or  by  several  concentric  curves. 

When  the  circle  is  coloured,  as  in  the  Egyptian 
hieroglyphs,  the  centre  is  painted  red,  while  the  disc 


24  FUTURE  LIFE 

itself  is  yellow,  the  actual  colouration  of  the  sun  being 
thus  reproduced.  When  the  drawing  is  not  coloured, 
the  bright  portions  are  represented  by  dots  or  shading. 

This  picture  of  the  sun  is  in  most  cases  surrounded 
by  an  aureole  of  little  circles,  each  dotted  in  the 
middle,  which  represent  solar  doubles  and  become  so 
many  life  germs ;  or  else  the  sun  gives  off  rays  com- 
posed of  identical  balls  of  life,  all  travelling  in  the 
direction  of  the  mummy  in  order  to  fill  it  with  the 
breath  of  a  new  life. 

We  encounter  a  similar  notion  upon  a  large  num- 
ber of  Gaulish  monuments,  upon  which  is  depicted 
the  creation  of  human  beings  and  even  of  animals, 
by  means  of  divine  germs,  each  of  which  is  despatched 
to  give  life  to  a  particular  organ.    In  the  majority  of 
cases  the  creation  of  a  new  being,  by  the  incarnation 
of  a  divine  germ  in  a  physical  body,  is  indicated  by  a 
round  spot  placed  in  the  centre  of  a  crescent.     As  a 
general  rule  the  germ  of  life  emanating  from  the  sun 
is  depicted,  like  the  sun  itself,  by  a  round  disc  with  a 
dot  in  the  centre ;  but  we  also  meet  with  other  appro-      y 
priate  symbols,  such  as  sparks,  and  pointed  flames,!  ^"^ 
reminding  one  of  mysterious  fire,  which  is  also  2]^^ 
manifestation  of  divine  activity. 

These  pointed  flames,  curling  upward  in  spirals, 
are  the  originals  of  a  whole  category  of  lines  and 
figures  still  employed  in  decorative  art. 

This  symbolical  ornamentation  so  frequently  re- 
sorted to  in  Egypt,  is  not,  however,  restricted  to  that 
country.  It  is  likewise  to  be  met  with  in  Greece  upon 
the  stelae  surmounting  sepulchral  monuments.  Ac- 
cording to  M.  Ravaisson,  these  stelae  were  erected 
above  tombs  in  order  to  represent  that  which  remained 


PREHISTORIC  TRADITIONS  AND  REMAINS    25 

of  the  dead,  and  arrest  the  semi-material  soul,  after 
the  fashion  of  the  open  chamber  of  aA  Egyptian 
mastaba. 

In  certain  inscriptions  the  stela  itself  speaks  in 
place  of  the  dead,  in  whose  name  it  received  religious 
worship,  fulfilling  in  some  degree  the  same  role  as  the 
double  among  the  Egyptians.  As  a  rule  the  stela  was 
decorated  with  a  palm,  which  became  the  divine  sym- 
bol, the  representation,  and  the  dwelling-place  of  the 
soul  itself.  The  tapering,  flame-like  palm  leaves  carry 
the  soul  toward  heaven,  where  it  is  transfigured  and 
becomes  "  such  and  such  an  Osiris,"  according  to  the 
phrase  so  common  upon  Egyptian  grave-stelae. 

On  certain  stelae  there  is  a  half-length  portrait  of 
the  deceased,  surrounded  with  acanthus  leaves,  which 
develop  by  degrees  into  wings.  M.  Soldi  is  able  to 
instance  an  ancient  vase,  at  present  deposited  in  the 
Naples  Museum,  upon  which  we  observe  the  bust  of 
a  man  bearing  two  wings,  and  just  beneath  these  and 
parallel  to  them  the  acanthus  leaves,  not  unlike  wings 
in  process  of  formation. 

Granted  this  notion  of  a  resurrection,  it  has  been 
maintained  that  an  entire  category  of  sepulchral  mon- 
uments owe  their  erection  and  form  to  the  desire  to 
place  upon  the  tomb  an  eternal  fire,  represented  in 
painting  or  in  metal  work  of  creative  flames  symbol- 
ised by  a  particular  kind  of  palm  leaf. 

We  shall  not  further  dwell  upon  the  interpretation 
of  the  sacred  language,  despite  the  keen  interest  at- 
taching to  the  examination  of  the  many  symbols 
studied  by  M.  Soldi,  especially  the  "  nedj,"  which 
originally  was  the  revolving  drill  set  in  motion  by  the 
friction  of  a  simple  cord  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining 


26  FUTURE  LIFE 

fire,  an  emanation  of  Agni,  but  was  later  confounded 
with  the  cross,  itself  regarded  as  a  symbol  of  life. 

It  will  be  sufficient  to  point  out  that,  in  the  unani- 
mous affirmation  of  all  the  symbols  thus  bequeathed 
by  the  sacred  language,  the  idea  of  the  resurrection 
has  invariably  inspired  the  various  races  of  mankind 
from  the  dawn  of  their  history.  Be  this  as  it  may, 
it  is  interesting  to  sum  up  the  philosophical  notion 
which  results  from  the  examination  of  these  prehis- 
toric monuments;  we  shall  proceed  to  do  so,  still 
taking  M.  Soldi's  works  as  our  guide. 

According  to  this  notion,  the  monuments  of  antiq- 
uity may  all  be  regarded  as  hymns  in  honour  of  the 
sun,  the  creative  and  regenerative  power  which  is  the 
source  of  all  life  on  earth.  The  monoliths  of  the  Celts, 
the  obelisks  of  the  Egyptians,  often  adorned  too  with 
the  solar  disc,  are  emblems  of  the  sun's  rays,  the 
spreading  of  which  is  figured  by  the  pyramids. 

If  we  direct  our  attention  more  especially  to  such 
a  work  of  art  as  the  Greek  temple,  we  can  discern  in 
it  again  a  rendering  of  the  solar  drama.  Such  an 
interpretation  was  certainly  admitted  by  the  ancients, 
and  we  find  it  referred  to  in  the  work  of  Vitruvius. 

The  eternal  god,  or  sun,  is  represented  by  a  radiant 
disc  or  acroterium  surmounting  the  pyramidal  pedi- 
ment of  the  temple.  Heaven  is  figured  in  the  bas- 
reliefs  ornamenting  the  pediment,  while  lower  down 
wx  have  in  the  architrave  the  line  of  separation  be- 
tween heaven  and  earth;  lower  still,  in  the  metopes 
and  triglyphs,  we  see  the  lightning  rending  the 
clouds  in  order  to  bring  down  fertilising  rain  and 
carry  the  creative  germ  down  the  temple  columns 
to  the  soil. 


PREHISTORIC   TRADITIONS  AND  REMAINS    Ti 

Let  it  be  added  that  the  corpuscles  or  Httle  animated 
spheres,  which  are  indispensable  agents  for  the  main- 
tenance of  life,  bring  about  the  agglomeration  of 
matter  to  form  bodies.  They  are  carried  round  in 
a  complex  rotatory  movement,  during  which  they  can 
attract,  retain,  and  in  some  way  absorb  the  atoms  of 
matter,  which  they  agglomerate  and  bring  into  some 
definite  form.  These  spheroids  are  particles  emanat- 
ing from  the  solar  god,  and  possessing  life  like  him; 
although  they  are  less  active,  they  ^hare  in  its  essence. 
It  may  thus  be  said  that  the  constant  action  of  this 
divinity  is  affirmed  wherever  the  sun's  light  pene- 
trates; it  surrounds  with  a  living  atmosphere  the 
beings  which  he  has  created,  and  transmits  to  them 
special  germs  containing  life  in  themselves;  it  is 
constantly  emitting  these  animate  spheroids  which 
permeate  living  bodies,  while  these  latter  radiate  sphe- 
roids in  their  turn  which  go  back  to  the  common 
centre.  Life  is  thus  maintained  by  an  invisible  series 
of  expirations  and  inspirations,  by  an  uninterrupted 
exchange  of  cosmic  radiations  sent  to  us  by  the  sun. 

This  is,  moreover,  a  conception  which  has  been  to 
a  certain  extent  revived  under  another  form  by 
modern  science  in  the  theory  of  an  incessantly  vibrat- 
ing etheric  fluid  which  it  views  as  the  source  not  only 
of  all  energy,  but  of  all  matter.  A  curious  return  to 
the  primitive  traditions  of  mankind. 


CHAPTER    III 

SAVAGE   TRIBES 

Customs  of  Savages  resulting  from  the  Universal  Belief  in  Survival.  — 
Embalming.  —  Cannibalism.  —  Slaughter  of  Aged  and  Infirm  Rela- 
tives.—  Metempsychosis.  —  Division  of  the  World  into  Infernal 
Regions  and  Blessed  Regions.  —  Independent  Elements  in  the 
Human  Soul  as  viewed  by  Fijians,  Greenlanders,  Algon quins, 
Polynesians,  Malagashes,  Dakotas,  Siamese,  Konds,  and  Burmese 
Karens. 

FROM  the  remotest  times  primitive  peoples 
have  beheved  in  the  survival  of  the  human 
soul.  We  have  seen  how  their  hopes  are 
plainly  written  on  the  rough-hewn  monuments  which 
they  have  left;  how  the  crude  drawings  which  are 
our  sole  evidence  of  the  existence  of  those  peoples 
at  the  same  time  acquaint  us  with  their  faith.  In 
subsequent  chapters  we  shall  pursue  the  evolution 
of  this  same  idea  among  the  great  races  of  antiquity 
which  have  left  bright  tracks  in  the  history  of  man. 
But,  before  so  doing,  it  will  be  of  interest  to  round 
off  our  survey  of  the  original  conceptions  of  mankind 
with  certain  observations  regarding  savage  races  at 
the  present  day.  We  can  gather  from  them  some 
notion  of  the  mental  attitude  of  primitive  peoples, 
and  their  semi-superstitious  beliefs  in  an  invisible 
world  present  us  either  with  a  spontaneous  manifes- 
tation of  man's  innate  instinct  or  else  with  the  echo, 
but  little  dulled,  of  a  revelation  not  yet  forgotten. 

Travellers    unanimously    agree    that    uncivilised 
peoples,   while  admitting  that  death   overtakes   the 


SAVAGE   TRIBES  29 

physical  body,  believe  that  an  immaterial  element 
survives  to  continue  its  existence  in  an  unknown 
world.  It  would  thus  appear  that  faith  in  the 
survival  of  the  soul  forms  the  general  belief  of 
mankind,  although  it  may  present  itself  under  quite 
dissimilar  and  even  contradictory  guises.  More  or 
less  marked,  its  influence  can  always  be  traced  upon 
the  traditional  customs,  even  when  those  customs 
are  seemingly  quite  alien  to  it  and  result  in  crimes 
which  cause  us  horror,  such  as  cannibalism  and  the 
killing  of  aged  or  infirm  relations.  So  true  it  is 
that  the  idea  of  a  future  life,  which  has  contributed 
the  best  part  to  human  progress  and  dictated  great 
acts  of  self-sacrifice,  has,  when  wrongly  understood, 
called  forth  excess  of  evil  where  its  desire  was  to 
encourage  the  love  of  what  is  right.  We  might 
point  to  analogous  examples  even  in  our  own  civil- 
isation. The  barbaric  exclamation  of  the  slayer  that 
*'  God  will  be  able  to  recognise  his  own,"  when  he 
puts  his  victims  to  death  haphazard,  is  but  a  false 
application  of  a  doctrine,  become  as  mischievous 
through  perversion  as  it  was  originally  pure  in 
principle. 

The  idea  that  the  disembodied  soul  continues  to 
inhabit  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  physical  body 
leads  naturally  to  a  desire  to  preserve  the  corpse, 
as  far  as  possible,  so  that  the  soul  may  not  be  con- 
strained to  abandon  it  entirely,  and  may,  if  it  be 
not  destroyed,  reanimate  it  upon  the  judgment-day. 
It  was  this  thought  which  caused  the  Egyptians  to 
embalm  the  bodies  of  their  dead  with  such  care;  the 
idea  was  also  common  to  the  Peruvians,  descend- 
ants, perhaps,  like  them,  of  the  inhabitants  of  ancient 


30  FUTURE  LIFE 

Atlantis ;  they,  too,  reverently  preserved  the  mummies 
which  they  obtained  by  desiccating  the  dead  in  the 
cold  dry  air  of  their  high  mountain-tablelands.  It 
is  with  similar  intent  that  divers  savage  tribes,  such 
as  the  Papuans  of  New  Guinea,  carefully  preserve 
the  dried  bones  of  their  ancestors,  especially  the 
skull  and  the  first  two  vertebrae.  After  the  body  has 
lain  in  the  earth  sufficient  time  to  bring  about  the 
destruction  of  its  perishable  parts,  they  exhume  the 
bones,  and  use  them,  with  great  reverence,  to  deco- 
rate their  dwellings  and  clothing. 

Since  savage  tribes  believe  that  the  soul,  despite  its 
independence  of  the  physical  body,  cannot  at  the  same 
time  entirely  quit  it,  it  is  hardly  unnatural  that  they 
should  come  to  think  the  best  sepulture  which  a  body 
can  receive  is  to  reembody  the  dead  man  immediately 
in  a  living  being,  who,  while  assimilating  the  flesh, 
will  likewise  absorb  the  moral  qualities  of  the  soul 
thus  brought  within  his  reach.  Thus  they  come  to 
believe  that  the  highest  honour  bestowable  upon  de- 
ceased relations  is  to  revitalise  their  bodies  by  eat- 
ing them  at  a  solemn  banquet.  Such  a  custom  is 
current  among  savage  races  ethnologically  and  geo- 
graphically remote  from  one  another.  M.  Gasc- 
Desfosses  tells  us  that  it  has  been  discovered  in 
Australian  Queensland,  in  New  Zealand,  in  Central 
Africa,  etc.  It  is  known  also  in  the  Ladrone  Islands, 
where  the  natives  burn  the  flesh  and  then  soak  the 
ashes  with  cocoa-spirit.  These  examples,  which  might 
readily  be  multiplied,  suffice  to  show  how  the  terrible 
custom  of  cannibalism  unexpectedly  attests  a  belief 
in  survival. 

The  notion  may  be  carried  still  further.     If  it  be 


SAVAGE  TRIBES  31 

admitted,  as  certain  tribes  do  admit,  that  the  soul, 
upon  its  arrival  in  the  other  world,  possesses  the 
strength,  energy,  and  will  which  belonged  to  it  at 
the  moment  of  death,  the  obvious  deduction  is  that 
it  is  preferable  for  it  to  quit  the  body  in  its  prime, 
rather  than  to  await  decrepitude,  which  destroys  the 
faculties  and  leaves  but.  a  weak  victim  unable  to 
battle  with  the  unknown  powers  of  the  world  be- 
yond. The  greatest  boon  which  can  therefore  be 
conferred  upon  an  old  man  is  to  take  his  life  while 
he  yet  retains  some  strength;  and  we  thus  arrive 
at  a  usage  which  seems  to  us  hardly  less  horrible 
than  cannibalism,  namely,  the  slaughter  of  aged  and 
infirm  relations.  This  is,  indeed,  a  ceremonial  crime, 
prompted  entirely  by  filial  affection  labouring  under 
a  false  conception  of  survival.  From  ancient  authors 
we  gather  that  this  custom  was  in  vogue  among 
peoples  who,  for  all  that,  attained  a  certain  degree 
of  culture.  Herodotus  relates  that  the  usage  existed 
among  certain  Indian  tribes,  while  Strabo  records 
it  as  belonging  to  the  Irish  and  Massagetse. 

Metempsychosis  is  another  form  of  the  idea  of 
survival  which  was  generally  believed  by  ancient 
races,  as  we  shall  have  occasion  to  remark  later;  it 
is  also  common  to  many  savage  peoples,  such  as  the 
African  negroes  and  the  American  Indians.  It  is 
said  that  both  the  Algonquins  and  Mongols,  racially 
so  far  apart,  used  to  put  the  dead  bodies  of  their 
children  by  the  roadside,  in  the  hope  that  the  soul 
of  each  might  become  reembodied  in  the  yet  unborn 
child  of  some  wayfaring  woman.  This  custom  still 
persists  among  the  Malagasy. 

A  belief  in  the  existence  of  spirits,  or  of  a  world 


32  FUTURE  LIFE 

beyond  the  grave,  divided  into  infernal  regions  and 
blessed  regions,  evidently  indicates  a  faith  in  sur- 
vival; it  is  to  be  found  among  all  savage  peoples 
as  among  civilised  races,  whose  religious  doctrines 
it  prompts.  We  shall  make  no  endeavour  to  recall 
the  superstitions  to  which  it  has  given  rise,  for  they 
are  practically  numberless.  We  shall  confine  our- 
selves to  mentioning  the  ideas  which  certain  primi- 
tive peoples  have  held  concerning  the  nature  of  the 
human  soul,  in  which  they  distinguish  independent 
elements  in  some  degree  corresponding  to  the  vari- 
ous faculties,  just  as  did  the  ancient  Egyptians. 

The  Fijians  ascribe  two  spirits  to  man,  says  M. 
Bourdeau  in  ''  Le  Probleme  de  la  Mort " ;  one  is 
the  shade,  or  black  spirit,  the  faithful  companion  of 
the  body,  and  it  is  buried  with  him ;  the  other  is  the 
light  spirit,  analogous  to  the  image  seen  in  reflec- 
tions, and  it  haunts  the  vicinity  of  the  body.  Green- 
landers  also  imagine  that  they  possess  two  souls,  the 
shade,  which  they  think  quits  the  sleeping  body  at 
night  in  dreams,  and  an  aerial  spirit,  or  breath, 
which  leaves  the  body  only  at  death. 

The  Algonquins  believe  in  the  survival  of  two 
souls,  one  of  which  resides  in  the  proximity  of  the 
body  and  receives  all  offerings  of  food,  while  the 
other  returns  to  the  land  of  its  ancestors.  Many 
Polynesians  distinguish  a  soul,  sogho,  which  is  the 
vital  principle,  and  a  shade,  luwo,  a  species  of  tute- 
lary spirit  which  departs  to  another  world,  but  leaves 
behind  it  upon  earth  a  spectre,  termed  noali.  Ac- 
cording to  the  Malagasy  belief,  one  of  their  souls, 
the  dina,  is  converted  into  pure  air;  the  second, 
sdinay  vanishes  at  death ;  and  the  third,  or  mastatoa, 


SAVAGE   TRIBES  33 

wanders  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  grave  in  the 
shape  of  a  ghost. 

The  Dakotas  in  America,  the  Siamese,  the  Konds 
in  Asia,  and  many  Polynesians  admit  the  coexistence 
of  four  souls,  which  at  death  are  separated.  One 
remains  near  the  body,  as  did  its  shadow;  another 
is  dispersed  into  the  air  like  breath;  a  third  goes 
back  to  the  village,  where  it  appears  to  the  surviv- 
ors in  the  visions  of  sleep;  the  last  goes  to  join 
the  spirits  far  away.  Finally,  we  should  notice  the 
Burmese  Karens,  who,  in  their  soul  or  double,  dis- 
tinguish as  many  as  seven  entities,  each  of  which 
survives  independently. 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  draw  attention  to  the 
very  interesting  analogy  between  these  crude  con- 
ceptions and  the  belief  in  ghosts  and  spirits  still  so 
common  among  Christian  populations.  The  analogy 
with  the  religious  ideas  of  the  Egyptians  and  with 
the  theosophical  doctrines  is  even  more  striking. 
These  also  are  based,  as  we  shall  see  later,  upon  the 
notion  of  the  complexity  of  the  immaterial  portion 
of  man. 


CHAPTER    IV 

THE    CHINESE 

Influence  of  the  Survival  Notion  on  the  Development  of  Ancient  Civil- 
isations as  exemplified  in  the  Chinese. — The  Origin  of  Ancestor- 
worship  among  the  Chinese,  Hindus,  Greeks,  and  Romans.  —  The 
Family  System  founded  by  Confucius.  —  His  Sacred  Books.  —  His 
Contemporary  Philosophers :  Lao  Tsze  in  China,  Pythagoras  in 
Greece,  and  Sakyamuni  in  India. — Lao  Tsze's  Belief  in  the  Sur- 
vival of  an  Individual,  Conscious  Soul.  —  Composition  of  the  Soul. 
—  The  Necessity  for  Correct  Funeral  Rites  and  Offerings  to  the 
Dead.  —  Chinese  Horror  of  being  deprived  of  Obsequies.  —  Swords 
and  other  Pointed  Articles  used  by  Ancient  Nations  to  drive  away 
Importunate  Spirits.  —  Analogy  between  the  Chinese  Funeral- 
tablet  and  the  Roman  Imagines.  —  The  Part  taken  by  Departed 
Spirits  in  all  Family  Matters.  —  The  Son's  Duty  to  continue  the 
Daily  Ceremonial  for  the  Happiness  of  his  Deceased  Father.  —  How 
the  Law  provides  Heirs  for  Men  who  have  no  Sons. 

IF  savage  tribes  furnish  us  with  evidence  at  the 
present  day  of  how  powerful  an  influence  the 
vague  behef  in  a  shadowy  survival  may  have 
had  upon  the  development  of  early  man,  the  Chinese, 
on  the  other  hand,  present  us  with  the  living  example 
of  a  social  system  which  has  now  elsewhere  vanished, 
but  which  was  that  of  the  principal  civilisations  of 
antiquity  in  what  we  may  term  their  Heroic  Period. 
During  the  five-and-twenty  centuries  which  sunder 
us  from  their  foundation,  those  institutions  have  re- 
mained immutably  identical,  and  have  passed  unaltered 
not  only  through  ages  of  time,  but  through  historical 
vicissitudes,  —  a  proof  of  their  extraordinary  vitality 


THE  CHINESE  35 

which  rouses  the  wonder  of  foreigners.  Nothing  so 
far  has  succeeded  in  shaking  the  deserved  respect  in 
which  they  are  held  by  the  four  hundred  miUions  of 
men  governed  by  them,  and  we  can  understand  the 
fine  contempt  which  their  representatives  instinctively 
entertain  for  our  Occidental  civilisations  and  their 
constant  ferments.  They  think,  and  perhaps  rightly, 
that  the  material  progress  of  which  we  are  so  proud 
has  been  too  dearly  bought  at  the  price  of  moral  dead- 
locks of  every  kind,  which  they  have  so  far  been  able 
to  avoid  while  still  preserving  the  ancient  notion  of 
survival. 

No  doubt  the  Chinaman  of  the  present  time  allows 
himself  in  daily  life  to  be  completely  engrossed  by 
material  needs,  and  he  seems  to  reck  little  of  a  future 
life,  all  notion  of  which  might  at  first  glance  appear 
to  be  quite  alien  to  him.  None  the  less  is  it  true  that 
each  one  of  his  fundamental  institutions  is  based 
exclusively  upon  the  idea  of  ancestor-worship,  and 
has  been  given  its  present  turn  by  the  primitive  con- 
ception of  its  founders,  which  tallied  moreover  with 
that  of  all  prehistoric  races. 

Confucius  and  Lao-Tsze,  who  lived  in  the  sixth 
century  before  our  era,  discovered  among  their  com- 
patriots the  same  ideas  which  then  dominated  foreign 
civilisations.  They  were  at  one  with  Hindu,  Greek, 
and  Roman  in  believing  that  the  souls  of  ancestors 
really  enjoyed  an  impersonal  after-life  in  the  world 
beyond,  and  that  they  became  blended  together  so  as 
to  form  a  kind  of  collective  family-soul.  This  soul 
remained,  however,  in  the  closest  possible  union  with 
its  offshoots,  enjoying  terrestrial  life,  and  owed 
its  very  existence  to  their  uninterrupted  offerings. 


36  FUTURE  LIFE 

Should  the  sacrifices  come  to  an  end,  either  through 
culpable  neglect  or  the  extinction  of  the  line,  the  soul 
was  destined  to  perish. 

Out  of  this  conception  the  Chinese  philosophers 
built  up,  as  we  shall  see,  a  family  system  which,  by 
a  unique  anomaly  of  history,  has  continued  to  the 
present  day.  It  must,  however,  be  supposed  that  this 
wonderful  persistence  is  in  great  part  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  Chinese  people  have  never  been  willing  to 
rise  above  the  original  rudimentary  notion,  and  have 
never  attempted  to  deduce  from  it  the  conception  of 
a  personal  after-existence  in  which  the  acts  of  the 
present  should  meet  their  due,  as  Occidental  society 
has  come  to  believe  under  the  influence  of  the 
Christian  dogma. 

Any  such  doctrine  is  practically  unknown  in  the 
Jon-Kiao,  the  religion  founded  by  Confucius;  and 
although  the  two  other  forms  of  worship  generally 
practised  in  China,  Taoism  and  Buddhism,  accept  the 
belief  in  more  precise  terms,  nevertheless  it  is  com- 
pletely disregarded  by  present-day  Chinamen,  what- 
ever may  be  the  particular  creed  to  which  they 
adhere.  Hence  it  may  be  inferred  without  doubt  that 
the  collective  cult  of  ancestors  as  practised  in  China 
is  connected  in  some  aspects  with  the  fetichism  of 
primitive  peoples ;  but  on  the  other  hand,  one  cannot 
ignore  the  fact  that  it  lends  definite  affirmation  to 
the  notion  of  survival,  and  testifies  strongly  in  favour 
of  the  unanimous  agreement  of  all  ancient  civilisa- 
tions as  to  this  fundamental  principle. 

We  shall  reproduce  several  passages  from  the  sacred 
books  of  Confucius  and  Lao-Tsze  which  clearly  speak, 
at  all  events,  of  abstract  immortality,  while  it  will  be 


THE  CHINESE  37 

Seen  that  some  appear  to  imply  individual  survival, 
as  has  been  acknowledged  by  certain  commentators. 
Subsequently  we  shall  summarise  the  Chinese  con- 
ception of  the  human  soul,  to  which  we  shall  trace  the 
characteristic  institutions  common  to  China  and  the 
whole  of  antiquity. 

Kung-Fu-Tsze  (551-479  b.  c),  the  great  philoso- 
pher, who  to  the  Chinese  is  still  the  unquestioned 
Master,  was  the  founder  of  that  ancestor-worship 
which  is  the  typical  characteristic  of  the  Chinese  social 
system.  But  if  in  practice  he  made  it  the  means  to 
achieve  important  social  ends,  he  almost  constantly  re- 
frained from  vindicating  it  from  a  metaphysical  point 
of  view  by  laying  down  any  theory  at  all  formal  in 
character  as  to  the  nature  of  the  human  soul.  He 
generally  confines  himself  to  giving  maxims  for  daily 
conduct,  to  setting  forth  the  practice  of  filial  piety,  to 
inculcating  the  worship  of  ancestors.  Their  conduct 
he  holds  up  for  imitation.  He  recommends  his  dis- 
ciples to  read  holy  books,  warning  them  at  the  same 
time  to  avoid  philosophical  speculations,  which  vex 
the  spirit  and  disturb  social  order.  The  Yih-King  or 
Book  of  Transformations,  which  probably  dates  from 
before  Confucius,  but  which  he  at  all  events  rehandled 
and  sent  down  to  posterity  under  his  name,  contains 
a  few  exceedingly  obscure  passages  alluding  to  the 
doctrine  of  an  immaterial  soul  distinct  from  the  body. 
Commentators  have  up  to  now  found  the  greatest  diffi- 
culty in  disentangling  this  doctrine  with  any  certainty. 
We  may,  however,  quote  the  following  passages  which 
would  seem  to  summarise  the  views  of  Confucius  upon 
the  nature  of  man.    Thus  it  is  written  in  the  famous 


38  FUTURE  LIFE 

Ta-Hio  (The  Perfecting  of  Oneself),  the  King  par 
excellence: 

"  Man  is  produced  by  the  action  of  two  contrary  elements,  Yang 
and  Yin,  upon  a  portion  of  the  substance  of  the  parents,  the 
germ.  These  two  universal  agents  of  nature  develop  the  germ, 
and  cause  it  to  assume  a  form.  Henceforth  it  is  a  living  being, 
but  not  yet  homogeneous  ;  it  must  yet  be  endowed  with  intellectual 
substance,  wherewith  Heaven  blesses  it  in  order  that  it  may  per- 
ceive, compare,  and  judge.  Death  is  not  destruction  properly  so 
called,  but  a  decomposition  which  resolves  each  substance  into 
its  natural  state.  The  intellectual  substance  again  ascends  to 
heaven  from  which  it  came,  the  animal  spirit,  KM,  unites  with 
the  aerial  fluid,  and  the  terrestial  and  aqueous  substances  turn 
once  more  to  earth  and  water." 

Here  we  find,  asserted  in  so  many  words,  the  exist- 
ence in  man  of  an  immaterial  principle  beyond  the 
reach  of  death,  and  Confucius  as  a  matter  of  fact  sees 
in  survival  the  foundation  of  ancestor-worship. 

"  They  are,"  he  says,  *'  everywhere,  above  us,  to  right,  to  left, 
and  they  encompass  us  on  all  sides.  These  spirits,  however,  for 
all  that  they  are  subtle  and  imperceptible,  make  themselves  mani- 
fest in  the  corporeal  form  of  beings.  But,  by  the  very  nature  of 
their  essence,  they  cannot  manifest  themselves  independently 
under  any  real  form  whatever." 

From  these  passages  it  is  not  possible  to  tell  to 
what  extent  the  disembodied  spirit  preserves  con- 
sciousness of  its  former  state. 

Lao-Tsze,  the  founder  of  Taoism,  was  a  contempo- 
rary of  Confucius.  He  was  a  far  more  idealistic  phi- 
losopher, and  introduced  into  China  lofty  metaphysical 
conceptions  analogous  to  those  promulgated  about  the 
same  time  by  Pythagoras  in  Greece  and  Sakyamuni 
in  India.  The  simultaneous  appearance  of  these  great 
philosophers,  bearers  of  a  probably  identical  doctrine 


THE  CHINESE  39 

to  absolutely  dissimilar  peoples,  is  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  incidents  of  history.  All  three  of  them 
attached  themselves  to  those  fundamental  conceptions 
which  we  always  encounter  at  the  dawn  of  civilisation. 
The  philosophy  of  Lao-Tsze  is  contained  in  a  work 
most  difficult  to  interpret,  the  very  title  of  which, 
Tdo  Teh  King,  has  given  rise  to  endless  controversy. 
Pauthier,  who  furnishes  this  translation  (supported 
by  M.  L.  de  Rosny),  remarks  the  similarity  between 
the  word  Tao  and  the  Greek  ©eo?.  According  to 
M.  L.  de  Rosny  we  are  to  look  upon  Tao  as  primordial 
reason,  the  X6yo<;  of  the  Neoplatonists,  which  is  the 
immutable  aspect  of  the  divinity;  and  we  are  to  see 
in  Teh  the  creative  activity,  the  eternal  rytyvofievov 
which  is,  as  it  were,  the  variable  aspect  of  the  Creator, 
viewed  through  the  material  world  which  he  has  made 
and  which  he  continually  maintains  by  his  power.  In 
the  philosophy  of  Lao-Tsze  we  thus  meet  once  more 
with  the  notion  of  a  divine  trinity,  the  Trimurti  of 
the  Hindus,  which  also  appears  in  the  great  primitive 
religions,  and  was  later  taken  up  and  magnificently 
expanded  by  the  Neoplatonic  school.  This  brief 
sketch,  which  is  all  that  we  can  give  here,  suffices  to 
show  the  importance  which  attaches  to  the  teaching 
of  Lao-Tsze,  that  is,  to  Taoism,  in  the  history  of 
thought;  and  considering  the  power  of  conception 
which  it  displays,  we  can  understand  the  conclusion 
of  M.  L.  de  Rosny  that  it  could  only  have  been  the 
work  of  a  single  man  in  a  country  where  the  labour 
of  many  generations  had  prepared  all  the  ways.  We 
are  indeed  able  among  Lao-Tsze's  predecessors  to 
point  to  actual  precursors  of  his  doctrine,  showing 
that  the  same  notions,  more  or  less  veiled,  are  to  be 


40  FUTURE  LIFE 

met  with  among  the  Chinese  as  among  the  other 
races  of  antiquity. 

From  this  standpoint,  and  as  a  curiosity,  let  me 
quote  the  following  passage  from  Yen-Wei-Tsze,  the 
immediate  follower  of  Lao-Tsze,  from  which  we  can 
infer  that  the  Chinese  already  possessed  advanced 
astronomical  knowledge:  "The  Earth  and  Heaven  are 
carried  through  space  and  interpenetrate  one  another." 

Like  all  preceding  philosophers,  Lao-Tsze  distin- 
guishes opposite  elements  in  the  human  soul,  one  spir- 
itual, huen,  and  the  other  semi-material,  phi.  The 
hum  is  the  subtle  male  principle,  the  intellectual  soul, 
divine  in  its  essence,  which  can  move  anywhere  and 
does  not  perish ;  it  is  united  to  the  vital  soul,  the  sen- 
tient principle,  phi,  and  between  them  they  animate 
the  human  body.  The  intellectual  soul  is  an  emanation 
of  the  tdo,  to  which  it  returns  after  death,  being  thus 
akin  to  all  beings  which  appear  in  life,  for  each  of 
them  returns  to  its  origin  after  having  fulfilled  its 
destiny. 

"  Not  to  know  that  one  becomes  immortal,"  says 
Lao-Tsze,  "  is  to  be  given  over  to  error  and  all  sorts 
of  calamities. 

"  That  which  is  subtle  and  spiritual  in  man  is  the 
portion  of  heaven;  that  which  pertains  to  flesh  and 
bones  is  the  portion  of  earth." 

Lao-Tsze  makes  no  explicit  statement  as  to  the 
survival  of  consciousness.  The  majority  of  commen- 
tators are  agreed  in  recognising  that  it  is  involved  in 
the  notion  of  the  perpetuity  of  the  life-giving  principle 
emanating  from  the  Tao,  as  Lao-Tsze  teaches  it. 

We  find  confirmation,  moreover,  in  certain  quota- 
tions from  the  works  of  his  immediate  disciples. 


THE    CHINESE  41 

According  to  Si-Haei  the  breath  of  life  is  dispersed, 
but  the  spirit,  the  soul,  the  divine  principle  of  intelli- 
gence, is  preserved  after  death. 

Elsewhere : 

"  There  is  no  absorption  of  the  individuality 
into  the  tao,  because  individuality  is  not  entirely 
perishable." 

Chuang-Tsze,  who  lived  in  the  year  338  b.c.^  says, 
"  Death  is  the  commencement  of  life." 

As  far  as  regards  the  notion  of  eternal  life,  we  may 
add  that  taoism  also  regards  it  as  destined  to  reward 
the  deeds  of  the  present  life.  The  Book  of  Rewards 
and  Punishments  speaks  of  heaven  and  hell,  and  after 
briefly  touching  upon  Nyan-Lo,  the  Western  Paradise, 
the  place  of  pleasure,  minutely  describes,  in  all  their 
fearful  detail,  the  eighteen  kinds  of  punishment 
awaiting  the  wicked  in  hell,  as  well  as  the  particular 
kinds  of  sins  for  which  each  is  prescribed. 

Like  Buddhism,  Taoism  teaches  metempsychosis, 
which  also  implies  personal  responsibility  beyond  the 
grave.  We  shall  see  later  that  the  Chinese  suppose 
the  hum,  or  superior  soul,  to  remain  fixed  to  the  tablet 
assigned  to  it  in  the  hall  of  ancestors.  They  admit, 
however,  that  the  souls  of  the  deceased  can  at  least 
temporarily  unite  in  a  common  gloomy  dwelling- 
place,  at  the  Yellow  Fountains,  Hoang-ti-nan,  which 
recall  the  Hebrew  Sheol  or  even  the  Elysian  Fields  of 
the  Greeks. 

In  accordance  with  Confucius  and  Lao-Tsze,  the 
latter-day  Chinese  generally  admit,  as  do  the  x\nna- 
mese  and  other  Far-Eastern  peoples,  that  the  human 
soul  consists  of  three  distinct  parts,  each  having  its 


42  FUTURE  LIFE 

seat  in  a  particular  organ  of  the  living  body,  and  re- 
newing its  independent  existence  after  death.  One 
is  semi-material,  and  is  usually  situated  in  the  belly. 
This  is  the  kuei,  which  is  united  with  the  body  of  the 
dead,  and  remains  in  or  near  the  grave. 

The  other  two  elements  are  purely  fluid.  They  are 
the  soul  of  the  passions,  or  ling,  situated  in  the  chest, 
and  the  rational  soul,  or  hum,  which  makes  the  brain 
to  operate.  They  quit  the  corpse  at  burial  and  return 
to  the  family-dwelling  in  the  folds  of  the  banner  borne 
by  the  dead  man's  son.  They  henceforth  remain  in 
the  sepulchral  tablet  sacred  to  the  deceased,  and  are 
generally  considered  as  blended  into  a  single  soul, 
the  hum. 

The  semi-material  soul,  or  kuei,  is  an  unconscious 
phantom  destined  to  occupy  the  grave,  as  we  have 
said ;  but  it  cannot  find  the  needful  repose,  unless  the 
funeral  has  been  duly  carried  out,  the  position  of  the 
tomb  rightly  chosen,  and  its  orientation  correctly 
made,  and  unless  the  descendants  come  regularly  to 
bring  their  due  offerings.  If  a  single  essential  con- 
dition be  omitted  the  kuei  is  robbed  of  repose,  and 
does  not  hesitate  to  haunt  the  living,  whom  it  tor- 
ments until  fitting  reparation  is  made. 

These  apparitions,  which  are  always  fired  with  hos- 
tile intent  toward  the  living,  are  much  dreaded  in 
Eastern  countries,  and  we  at  once  see  why  the  Chinese, 
like  the  ancients,  attach  such  importance  to  burial. 
In  their  view  it  is  a  question  of  prime  importance, 
giving  rise  to  the  nicest  calculations,  for  the  Chinese 
.  do  not  unite  all  the  ancestors  in  a  common  grave.  The 
position  of  the  tomb  and  the  date  of  interment  have 


THE  CHINESE  43 

to  be  fixed  for  each  individual,  his  particular  case 
taken  into  account,  and  all  possible  occult  influences 
allowed  for.  This  necessitates  minute  investigation 
and  the  assistance  of  seers  of  great  repute.  Solemn 
funerals  are  consequently  not  held  immediately  after 
death,  but  often  several  months  afterward,  when  the 
influences  are  deemed  opportune.  Despite  every  care 
it  sometimes  happens  that  the  kuei  finds  no  peace, 
and  it  becomes  necessary  to  shift  the  grave,  as  the 
seers  direct. 

Deprivation  of  burial  has  always  been  viewed  in 
China  as  the  height  of  misfortune.  Condemned  pris- 
oners do  not  hesitate  to  choose  death  rather  than 
certain  punishments  which,  though  sparing  their  life, 
would  prevent  their  receiving  due  burial  rites.  De- 
capitation, which  precludes  the  performance  of  proper 
obsequies,  is  more  dreaded  than  strangulation.  It  is 
with  the  same  idea  that  the  Chinese  insure  the  burial 
of  those  dying  far  from  home.  A  wicker  dummy  is 
prepared,  in  which  the  soul  of  the  deceased  is  called 
upon  by  a  medium  to  take  up  its  abode.  The  dummy 
is  then  buried  with  all  the  honours  which  would  have 
been  observed  with  regard  to  the  actual  remains. 

Concerning  the  dreaded  apparition  of  the  kuei,  it 
should  be  mentioned  that  the  best  way  of  avoiding 
their  attacks  is  to  stand  at  a  distance  and  threaten 
them  with  a  sword,  or  generally  with  any  pointed 
article;  and  it  has  been  advanced  with  great  likeli- 
hood that  eagerness  to  avert  evil  spirits  by  the  inter- 
position of  points  has  contributed  in  large  degree 
toward  that  peculiar  manner  of  roofing  large  build- 
ings, private  houses,  and  especially  pagodas,  which 
is  so  constantly  met  with  in  the  Far  East.    It  is  also 


44  FUTURE  LIFE 

interesting  that  this  same  belief  in  the  potency  of 
points  is  common  to  all  ancient  civilisations.  Homer 
informs  us  that  Ulysses,  after  having  gone  to  consult 
the  shade  of  the  soothsayer  Teiresias,  was  forced  to 
ward  off  the  too  importunate  spirits  with  his  sword. 
This,  moreover,  is  a  point  in  which  modern  science 
agrees  with  ancient  belief,  for  science  tends  to  as- 
similate the  transmission  of  externalised  odic  fluid 
with  that  of  the  electric  current. 

The  Chinese  believe  not  only  in  the  appearance  of 
these  unconscious  phantoms  formed  by  the  kuei,  but 
also  think  that  it  is  possible  for  the  soul  to  appear 
in  all  its  integrity,  owing  to  the  return  of  the  huen. 
This,  however,  is  an  entirely  exceptional  phenomenon 
bordering  on  the  miraculous,  for  it  requires  that 
the  two  other  more  subtle  elements  should  leave  the 
home  of  ancestors  and  reunite  with  the  semi-material 
soul  from  which  they  had  parted  at  death.  The 
manifestation  is  then  conscious,  constituting  a  com- 
plete temporary  resurrection,  and  can  occur  only  to 
convey  communications  of  the  utmost  gravity. 

The  thought  of  death  does  not  disturb  the  Chinese. 
He  has  his  coffin  always  in  readiness,  and  as  the 
fatal  moment  draws  on,  he  is  clothed  in  his  burial 
garb,  while  a  silken  double,  which  is  to  catch  up  his 
subtle  soul  at  the  moment  of  its  release  from  the 
body,  is  prepared.  This  double  is  afterwards  carried 
to  the  grave  with  the  corpse,  there  to  remain  until 
the  solemn  obsequies,  in  order  that  it  may  take  firm 
hold  of  the  soul  of  the  dead  man,  whose  son  then 
brings  the  soul  home  to  the  funeral-tablet,  which  is 
henceforth  its  everlasting:  habitation. 


THE  CHINESE  45 

This  tablet  plays  an  analogous  part  to  the  ances- 
tral imagines  preserved  by  the  Romans;  on  it  are 
inscribed  in  golden  letters  the  principal  dates  of  the 
dead  man's  life,  his  name,  that  of  his  sovereign,  and, 
in  addition,  the  word  "  Chin-Wei,"  meaning  soul- 
dwelling.  The  huen  thus  imprisoned  takes  its  place 
henceforth  amongst  the  souls  of  the  ancestors,  inhab- 
iting with  them  the  funeral-hall,  wherein  the  com- 
memorative tablets  are  arranged  before  a  holy  altar, 
and  in  front  of  the  table,  round  which  upon  solemn 
occasions  all  the  relations  gather,  and  which  forms 
the  outward  sign  of  the  unbroken  communion  of  the 
living  with  the  dead. 

In  this  chamber  the  living  offer  up  the  ceremonial 
sacrifices,  paper  pictures  of  the  articles  which  the 
dead  may  require  in  the  world  beyond,  or  copies  of 
prayers  or  advice  intended  to  aid  them  in  the  struggle 
against  infernal  powers.  Here  on  memorial  days  all 
partake  of  a  family  banquet,  the  chavistia,  in  which 
the  dead  themselves  share.  Here  also  all  important 
occurrences  are  notified  to  the  souls  and  entered  in 
the  Family  Book,  the  kin-pu.  The  souls,  on  their 
part,  always  remain  in  this  chamber  so  as  to  be  in 
continual  contact  with  the  living.  They  are  present, 
though  unseen,  at  all  family  consultations  under  the 
presidence  of  the  head  of  the  family,  who  owes  to 
them  the  sovereign  power  of  which  he  is  the  de- 
positary. Sometimes  they  make  themselves  heard, 
if  need  be,  by  the  lips  of  the  youngest  born,  the 
latest  to  receive  their  inspiration.  They  are  in- 
formed of  births  of  new  scions,  and  they  hearken  to 
the  farewell  of  the  maiden  who  quits  her  father's 
house  to  enter  a  new  family  on  her  husband's  arm. 


46  FUTURE  LIFE 

With  special  joy  they  welcome  the  betrothed  iDride, 
yesterday  a  mere  stranger,  to-morrow  to  become 
mate  of  the  son  of  the  house,  who,  as  he  leads  her 
in,  lays  on  the  altar  the  symbolic  cards  bound  with 
scarlet  thread,  which  tell  of  the  coming  wedding. 
They  look  forward  already  to  the  children  of  the 
future  who  shall  perform  the  rites  ensuring  the  hap- 
piness of  souls.  Thus  in  the  yonder-world  the  an- 
cestors draw  life,  as  it  were,  from  the  family  of 
their  foundation,  share  its  griefs  and  joys,  watch 
over  its  fortunes,  and  feel  the  counterfeit  of  that 
personal  existence,  not  perhaps  vouchsafed  to  them. 
Last  hope  of  all,  they  are  capable  of  receiving 
honour  and  reward  from  the  State,  and  of  living 
anew  exalted  in  the  esteem  of  their  compatriots,  if 
the  descendant  whom  they  have  left,  and  who  is  but 
one  of  themselves,  wins  by  his  good  deeds  that 
noblest  and  most  prized  of  all  rewards,  the  ennoble- 
ment of  his  ancestors. 

The  paramount  question  is  to  leave  sons  behind, 
seeing  that  all  happiness  beyond  the  tomb  hinges  on 
the  perpetuation  of  the  family.  Dishonoured  is  the 
Chinaman  who  dies  without  male  issue,  we  are  told 
by  M.  Abel  de  Remusat,  for  no  man  will  perform 
for  him  the  daily  ceremonial  which  keeps  the  dead 
present  among  the  living.  Nobody  will  come  at 
morn  or  even  to  kneel  before  the  tablet  on  which  his 
name  is  written ;  nobody  will  burn  -perfumes,  offer 
him  viands,  or  arrange  his  garments;  nobody  will 
keep  his  empty  place  in  the  family,  stir  the  sod 
above  his  grave,  tend  the  trees  which  grow  thereon, 
or  weep  and  wail  upon  his  tomb  on  the  anniversary 
of  his  death. 


THE  CHINESE  47 

The  ceasing  of  funeral  rites  is  the  most  dreaded 
of  all  calamities;  the  most  terrible  chastisement  that 
can  befall  a  criminal  is  the  prohibition  of  marriage 
to  his  offspring,  which  breaks  the  line  of  his  de- 
scent. The  ''  Historic  Annals  "  relates  a  particularly 
striking  example  under  this  head.  There  were  two 
brothers,  the  elder  of  whom,  being  married  and  the 
father  of  two  children,  offered  to  die  in  the  place 
of  his  young  bachelor  brother,  simply  because  he 
foresaw  the  utter  misery  of  the  latter  in  the  future 
world,  since  there  would  be  no  one  to  perform  the 
customary  sacrifices  for  him. 

It  is  the  same  feeling  which  makes  each  Chinaman 
so  fervently  desire  to  return  and  sleep  his  last  sleep 
in  the  tomb  of  his  ancestors,  so  as  to  participate 
directly  in  the  ritual  offerings  of  his  descendants. 
Chinese  workmen  who  have  emigrated  far  insist  on 
the  condition,  when  engaging,  that  their  bodies  shall 
be  brought  home  to  the  land  of  their  birth. 

Clearly  such  a  belief  in  survival  sufficiently  ac- 
counts for  the  development  of  institutions  based  on 
relationship.  For  the  Chinese  of  to-day,  as  for  the 
races  of  antiquity,  the  father  of  the  family  alone  is 
qualified  to  sacrifice,  and  in  him  is  concentrated  the 
authority  of  the  ancestors  whom  he  represents  in  the 
visible  world.  In  his  family  he  is  the  sovereign  lord 
of  men  and  property,  he  can  excommunicate  the  err- 
ing child  and  decree  that  his  soul  shall  never  receive 
the  prayers  due  to  ancestors.  At  the  same  time  he 
is  responsible  for  the  acts  of  all  his  forefathers, 
whom  he  likewise  renders  liable  to  such  penalty  as 
he  himself  may  incur.    From  the  material  standpoint 


48  FUTURE  LIFE 

he  has  only  the  usufruct  of  the  paternal  inheritance, 
which  he  cannot  ahenate.  He  is  bound  to  pass  it 
on  to  his  legitimate  descendant,  who  will  ensure  per- 
petual sacrifice;  and,  of  course,  the  rights  of  each 
of  the  members  of  the  family  are  determined  exactly 
according  to  the  measure  in  which  they  can  be  called 
on  to  cooperate  wdth  him. 

An  inheritance  descends  naturally  in  the  male  line, 
and  in  principle  daughters  cannot  receive  a  share. 
However,  they  are  not  in  reality  so  rigidly  excluded 
as  was  the  case  in  ancient  Rome.  Sometimes  they 
are  admitted  to  family  gatherings,  even  after  their 
marriage,  and  can  succeed  on  the  failure  of  male 
issue. 

The  prime  necessity  of  leaving  male  successors 
being  known  and  accepted  by  all  the  Chinese,  the 
law  has  endeavoured  to  furnish  them  with  the  means 
of  meeting  it.  It  allows  them  to  take  wives  of  the 
second  class,  —  tsieh,  —  when  the  wife  of  the  first 
class,  —  tsi,  —  who  remains  always*  the  sole  mistress 
of  the  house,  fails  to  present  them  with  a  man-child. 
Children  of  such  unions  are,  however,  accounted  the 
legitimate  offspring  of  the  wife  of  the  first  class. 
Such  a  custom  was  not  rare  in  ancient  civilisations, 
and  underlies  several  passages  in  the  Bible;  for  ex- 
ample, that  which  deals  with  the  relations  of  Abra- 
ham with  Sarah  and  her  servant  Hagar.  When 
touching  upon  the  Hindus,  we  shall  find  the  custom 
defined  in  the  laws  of  Manu. 

If  unwilling  to  fall  back  upon  this  kind  of  supple- 
mentary marriage,  the  head  of  a  family  is  enabled 
to  take  a  son  by  adoption,  who  shall  enjoy  all  the 
privileges  of  a  legitimate  child;    and  Chinese  law, 


TH2  CHINESE  49 

like  Roman  law  of  old,  minutely  adjusts  the  condi- 
tions under  which  an  adoption  can  be  ratified.  The 
division  of  an  inheritance  is  made  upon  the  basis 
of  equality  between  all  legitimate  male  children, 
direct  or  adopted,  without  regard,  in  the  case  of  the 
first,  to  the  status  of  the  mother. 

The  eldest  son,  whose  duty  it  will  be  to  carry  on 
the  worship  of  the  ancestors  and  keep  the  Family 
Book,  receives  an  extra  portion  to  meet  the  expenses 
of  sacrifices.  This  kind  of  inalienable  patrimony, 
entitled  hang  hu  (fire  and  incense),  shows  how  be- 
lief in  survival  may,  in  our  Occidental  societies,  have 
given  birth  to  the  rights  of  the  eldest  son. 


CHAPTER   V 

THE   EGYPTIANS 

The  Influence  of  the  Learning  of  the  Egyptians  on  that  of  other 
Nations. —Their  Knowledge  of  Pure  Science.  —  Their  Knowledge 
of  Astronomy.  —  Their  Constant  Preparation  for  the  Life  to  come. 

—  Belief  in  a  Fluidic  Intermediary  between  the  Body  and  the 
Spirit.  —  The  Individual  Elements  of  the  Soul.  —  Effects  of  various 
Foods  upon  the  Soul.  —  Regulations  for  the  Preservation  of  Purity. 

—  Provision  for  the  Support  of  the  Life  of  the  Double.  —  Trial  and 
Final  Destiny  of  the  Soul.  —  Metempsychosis  for  the  Wicked  only. 

—  Monumental  Evidence  for  the  Idea  of  Survival.  —Creative  Pov/er 
of  the  Sun.  —  Symbols  of  the  Sun  and  of  the  Soul.  —  The  first 
Rough  Outline  of  the  Atomic  Theory. 

THE  Egyptian  race  stands  out  proud  and 
impassive  against  the  dawn  of  history.  In 
the  midst  of  barbarous  peoples  it  alone  pos- 
sessed knowledge  and  culture,  and  it  probably  gave 
the  first  stimulus  to  the  great  civilisations  which 
followed  it  in  the  course  of  ages.  The  builders  of 
other  nations  and  their  great  philosophers  came  to 
Egypt's  sanctuaries  in  quest  of  learning,  and  she 
bequeathed  to  them  the  profundity  of  her  knowl- 
edge. Her  teachings  were  not  always  understood 
or  wholly  assimilated  by  new  races,  but  have  left  a 
mark,  either  apparent  or  hidden,  upon  their  intellect 
and  traditions.  The  influence  of  Egypt  is  still  per- 
ceptible to-day.  We  still  preserve  many  a  custom 
brought  thence,  especially  in  astronomical  matters. 
Thence  come  our  distinction  of  seven  days  in  the 


THE  EGYPTIANS  51 

week,  our  recognition  of  lunar  months,  our  names 
for  the  principal  stars,  the  twelve  signs  of  the 
zodiac,  etc. 

The  deeper  we  explore  that  venerable  civilisation 
by  means  of  the  comparative  study  of  its  surviving 
relics  and  inscriptions,  the  more  clearly  we  recognise 
that  upon  matters  of  pure  science  it  had  already 
attained  exact  knowledge  such  as  we  have  but  now 
rediscovered,  and  that  it  had  already  given  precise 
well-pondered  answers  to  the  great  fundamental  ques- 
tions which  mankind  has  since  debated  without  reach- 
ing any  final  solution. 

Perhaps  these  Egyptians  owed  their  wisdom  to 
some  forgotten  forerunners,  like  those  legendary  At- 
lantes  swallowed  by  Ocean  in  the  days  of  a  colossal 
cataclysm  faintly  echoed  in  ancient  fable.  Whatever 
may  have  been  the  origin  of  their  knowledge  it  is 
certain  that  they  already  knew  of  the  isolation  of  the 
earth  in  space,  through  which  it  sailed  like  the  sun 
and  stars.  This  is  distinctly  stated  in  original  papyri 
now  in  the  British  Museum,  especially  in  the  Harris 
papyrus.^  We  might  also  refer  to  what  we  know 
from  several  authors  of  antiquity,  such  as  Philolaus, 
pupil  of  Pythagoras,  quoted  by  Plutarch,  Niketas  of 
Syracuse,  Diodorus  Siculus,  Aristotle,  and  others,  not 
to  mention  the  famous  investigations  in  the  Great 
Pyramid  by  Piazzi  Smyth,  the  astronomer.  It  is 
'well-known  that  he  regarded  it  in  the  light  of  a 
wonderful  astronomical  monument,  for  its  principal 
measurements  reproduce,  as  he  discovered,  the  main 
data  of  the  solar  system. 

1  See  "  Coropte-rendu  du  Congr^s  provincial  des  Orientalistes 
Fran9ais,"  Saint  fitienne,  1875. 


52  FUTURE  LIFE 

But  beyond  this  profound  astronomical  knowledge, 
the  Egyptian  possessed  upon  the  great  problems  of 
the  world  beyond  and  the  constitution  of  man  a 
complete  body  of  doctrines  which,  as  it  was  secretly 
taught,  has  unfortunately  become  lost ;  but  it  is  in- 
teresting to  note  that  it  was  based  upon  a  general 
knowledge  of  the  universe  which  was  perhaps  never 
surpassed  in  antiquity. 

No  race  has  even  been  so  absorbed  by  the  problem 
of  life  and  death  as  were  the  Egyptians.  In  each 
one  of  their  acts  they  seemed  to  be  looking  toward 
the  final  end ;  so  much  so  indeed  that  the  present  life 
was  for  them  scarcely  more  than  a  preparation  for 
the  existence  beyond  the  grave,  when,  as  the  books 
of  Hermes  taught,  the  soul  should  at  last  be  freed 
from  the  yoke  of  matter. 

From  what  we  are  told  by  Diodorus  Siculus  we 
know  that  the  Egyptians  regarded  the  dwelling-places 
of  the  living  as  mere  transitory  hostelries,  seeing  that 
we  abide  therein  so  short  a  space;  but  the  graves 
they  called  eternal  habitations,  for  the  dead  remain 
in  the  nether  world  time  without  end.  They  con- 
sequently took  small  pains  in  building  their  houses, 
while  they  constructed  their  tombs  upon  the  most 
lavish  scale.  Throughout  their  forty  centuries  of 
history  they  were  inevitably  led  to  modify  in  many 
respects  their  primitive  notions  regarding  the  soul; 
but  upon  the  fundamental  idea  of  survival  they  never 
felt  a  doubt,  always  admitting  that  man  contained 
within  him  a  divine  ray  emanating  from  Ammon-Ra. 
This  ray  they  called  the  ka;  it  is  embodied  in  the 
flesh,  but  survives  its  destruction. 


THE  EGYPTIANS  53 

They  imagined  that  the  divine  ray  constituting  the 
spiritual  soul  acts  upon  the  body  through  the  agency 
of  a  peculiar  fluid-like  compound,  in  which  by  de- 
grees they  came  to  isolate  several  different  elements, 
mutually  interpenetrant,  and  serving  as  agents  for 
the  various  faculties  of  the  soul.  These  elements 
w^ere  as  follows,  but  their  attributes  are  still  matter 
of  debate  among  Egyptologists: 

The  ka  is,  properly  speaking,  the  ego,  the  divine 
emanation,  and  contains  a  vital  principle  made  up 
of  two  elements,  —  ah,  conscious  will-power,  and 
hati,  unconscious  will-power.  The  ka  is  enveloped 
in  the  tet  and  emits  xaih-r2ijs,  which  have  a  particu- 
lar odour,  peculiar  to  each  race.  The  form  of  the 
immaterial  body  is  called  sahu,  —  that  is,  properly 
speaking,  the  phantom  or  double  that  takes  the  same 
shape  as  the  physical  body,  the  airy  soul  that  ap- 
pears when  the  dead  are  evoked. 

Other  Egyptologists  describe  the  attributes  of  the 
various  elements  differently,  and  classify  these  fluidic 
bodies  in  order  of  materiality.  Ka  is  the  divine  spirit ; 
ah  is  the  spiritual  soul,  or  intellect;  tet  is  the  astral 
body,  the  agent  of  passions  and  desires;  sahu  is  the 
double ;  hati  is  the  vitality ;  and  xa  is  the  physical  body. 

However  the  case  may  be,  ah  is  the  part  of  the 
soul  which  bears  the  responsibility  for  the  deeds  of 
the  deceased,  and  it  is  ah  which  is  tried  and  weighed. 
Hati,  which  is  placed  in  the  heart,  is  merely  an 
irresponsible  instrument.  Porphyry  informs  us  that 
before  embalming  a  body,  care  was  taken  to  remove 
the  entrails  and  to  place  them  in  a  vessel  apart, 
which  was  then  flung  into  the  river.  The  vessel 
was  first  lifted  on  high  to  be  seen  of  the  god  Ra, 


54  FUTURE  LIFE 

and  then  before  its  immersion  certain  formulae  were 
uttered  by  which  the  dead  man  cast  upon  his  en- 
trails all  responsibility  for  any  possible  misdeeds. 
The  following  sentence  is  commonly  inscribed  on 
the  monuments :  '*  May  justice  be  with  his  spirit,  and 
the  sin  with  his  belly." 

This  belief  in  the  complexity  of  the  fluid-like  ele- 
ments attached  to  the  physical  body  caused  the 
Egyptians  to  bestow  especial  care  upon  their  food, 
which  they  thought  capable  of  producing  indirect 
effects  upon  the  soul  itself,  particularly  upon  the 
element  of  life  proper,  and  upon  the  astral  body. 
Thus  various  vegetable  stuffs,  such  as  barley,  wheat, 
and  especially  beans,  were  prohibited.  Certain 
writers  think  that  the  interdiction  of  these  last  was 
due  to  an  idea  that  beans  were  perhaps  the  refuge 
for  the  souls  of  the  dead;  certainly  they  are  often 
employed  in  magical  operations.  It  is  known  that 
Pythagoras  also  laid  down  this  prohibition,  which 
he  doubtless  borrowed  from  Egypt  together  with 
the  rest  of  his  doctrine.  The  use  of  the  flesh  of  a 
great  number  of  animals  was  likewise  forbidden,  as 
the  unclean  spirits  possibly  inhabiting  certain  kinds 
were  also  to  be  dreaded.  It  was  not  allowed  that 
the  head  of  any  beast  should  be  eaten ;  it  was  to  be 
thrown  into  the  Nile.  The  anxiety  to  escape  all 
pollution,  which  prompted  the  choice  of  victuals,  is 
also  to  be  traced  in  matters  of  dress.  Certain  animal 
products  were  discarded.  Flax  was  the  sole  material 
employed  in  the  manufacture  of  clothing  directly 
touching  the  body;  it  was  not  permissible  to  enter 
a  temple  or  a  tomb  with  even  an  outer  garment  of 
wool. 


THE  EGYPTIANS  55 

These  different  regulations  with  regard  to  food, 
the  choice  of  clothing,  and  the  employment  of  time, 
were  enforced  with  especial  rigour  upon  the  prin- 
cipal people  of  the  nation,  such  as  the  priests,  whose 
duty  it  was  to  be  very  careful  to  preserve  a  state  of 
absolute  purity.  Owing  to  their  exalted  position, 
their  faults  involved  very  serious  results,  for  they 
might  impair  the  performance  of  certain  holy  rites, 
and  thus  the  guilt  would  fall  upon  the  whole  people. 
As  for  the  king,  he  must  be  pure  among  the  pure, 
for  he  was  the  Horus  of  the  land  charged  with  the 
uprooting  of  all  disorders  and  uncleanness.  He  was, 
therefore,  allowed  to  eat  only  certain  special  things, 
principally  goose-flesh  and  veal.  He  was  to  be  sat- 
isfied with  a  single  portion  of  wine,  to  wear  gar- 
ments of  flax  only,  like  the  priest,  to  keep  a  strict 
watch  upon  his  thoughts  and  doings,  and  to  attend 
to  no  business  save  at  the  propitious  hour.  It  is 
hardly  necessary  to  add  that  this  constant  need  of 
cleanness  led  the  Egyptians  to  avoid  any  close  con- 
tact with  foreigners.  It  was  forbidden  to  sit  at 
their  table,  to  eat  of  their  food,  or  to  drink  from 
their  cup. 

Proceeding  upon  the  idea  that  the  nature  of  food 
assimilated  during  life  exerted  an  influence  upon  the 
condition  of  the  double  forming  the  less  refined 
portion  of  the  fluid-like  body,  the  Egyptians  arrived 
at  the  conclusion,  as  did  all  primitive  races,  that 
this  double  is  also  sensible  of  the  need  of  appro- 
priate nutriment  for  the  support  of  its  own  exist- 
ence, and  that  it  consequently  continues  to  inhabit  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  corpse.  It  allows,  however, 
the  more  subtle  elements  to  escape  and  to  proceed 


66  FUTURE  LIFE 

immediately  toward  Amenti,  there  to  undergo  trial. 
Children  and  heirs  are  bound  to  support  the  life  of 
the  double,  at  the  same  time  dissuading  it  from 
quitting  the  tomb ;  and  this  constant  anxiety  certainly 
explains,  what  at  first  sight  appears  so  strange,  the 
burdensome  care  with  which  the  Egyptians  attended 
to  their  dead.  Thus  they  embalmed  the  corpse  with 
meticulous  precautions  to  prevent  its  decay  and  to 
avoid  scaring  away  the  subtle  spirit,  which  they  de- 
sired to  remain  close  to  the  dead  body.  The  corpse 
itself  was  placed  in  a  closely  walled-up  cell,  but  a 
chamber  in  the  tomb  was  carefully  set  apart  for  the 
sole  use  of  the  double,  which  was  invited  to  take 
up  its  residence  therein.  In  order  to  enliven  its 
perpetual  confinement  the  walls  were  invariably  dec- 
orated with  scenes  from  life,  which  should  remind  it 
continually  of  its  past  existence.  This  chamber  was 
left  open,  and  there  upon  holy  days  the  children  met 
to  do  worship  to  the  dead  and  make  offerings  to  his 
double,  which  should  uphold  it  in  its  enfeebled  state. 

The  fate  of  the  soul  is  determined  in  a  solemn 
trial,  which  takes  place  immediately  after  it  has  been 
separated  from  the  body  of  the  flesh  and  from  its 
double.  For  this  purpose  it  is  brought  before  that 
dread  tribunal  sitting  in  the  gateway  to  Amenti,  at 
the  entrance  to  the  nether  world,  in  front  of  the  Hall 
of  the  Two  Justices.  In  order  to  guide  the  soul  in 
these  unknown  regions  and  help  it  to  withstand  the 
terrible  ordeal  which  awaits  it,  care  is  taken  that  a 
copy  of  the  burial  ritual  shall  be  placed  in  the 
grave  to  serve  as  a  sort  of  viaticum  and  supply  all 
necessary  information.     Therein  the  soul  will  learn 


THE  EGYPTIANS  57 

the  road  which  is  to  be  followed,  all  precautions  to 
be  observed,  and,  above  all,  the  hallowed  formulae 
to  be  repeated  in  order  to  enlist  the  favour  of  the 
judges,  to  the  end  that  the  dead  may  see  even  as 
do  the  souls  of  the  good,  and  that  he  may  hear  and 
be  seated  like  them,  according  to  the  formulae  of  the 
burial  prayers.  Thus  strengthened  and  upheld,  the 
soul  appears  before  the  tribunal  which  is  to  pronounce 
its  destiny  for  eternity.  It  sees  the  god  Osiris  girt 
with  fillets  and  seated  on  a  throne,  with  crown  on 
head  and  sceptre  in  hand,  in  the  midst  of  a  lake  of 
the  water  of  life,  upon  which  float  lotus-flowers.  By 
his  side  are  seated  two-and-forty  spirits  of  the  nether 
world,  the  judges  of  the  dead,  who  pass  sentence  on 
the  two-and-forty  sins.  They  wear  ostrich  feathers 
as  emblems  of  truth  and  justice. 

When  led  before  Osiris  the  soul  entreats  to  be 
allowed  into  the  communion  of  the  blessed.  It  then 
undergoes  an  examination,  in  which  it  must  clear 
the  dead  from  every  charge  of  sin,  and  prove  that 
he  kept  all  the  rules  of  purity,  and  was  guiltless  of 
murder  or  unchastity;  that  he  never  offended  the 
gods,  or  the  kings,  or  his  superiors,  or  his  father; 
that  he  laid  no  snare  for  sacred  animals,  fish,  or  fowl ; 
that  he  never  diverted  the  course  of  the  Nile  waters 
or  sought  to  deceive  god  or  man;  that  he  never 
overburdened  his  servants  with  toil;  that  he  never 
starved  anybody  or  caused  any  one  to  weep ;  that  he 
had  avoided  sloth  and  weakness.  Only  thus  can  the 
soul  find  mercy  at  the  hands  of  its  incorruptible 
judges. 

Thereafter  it  is  weighed  in  the  balance  against  the 
ostrich  feather  of  truth  and  justice  placed  in  the 


58  FUTURE  LIFE 

other  scale.  By  the  side  of  the  first  scale  stands 
the  jackal-headed  god  Anubis,  the  accuser  of  the 
dead;  by  the  second  the  hawk-headed  god  Horus; 
near  at  hand  is  seated  Toth,  who  marks  the  result 
of  the  weighing  and  enters  the  sentence  of  the  sov- 
ereign judge.  If  the  sentence  is  favourable  and  the 
soul  is  found  pure,  it  receives  an  ostrich  feather, 
while  from  the  trees  of  life,  the  persea  and  sycamore, 
Neith  and  Hathor  rain  down  upon  it  the  celestial 
moisture  which  is  to  regenerate  it  for  all  time. 

Thus  transfigured,  the  spiritual  soul  passes  through 
the  nether  world  unscathed  by  the  dread  hippopota- 
mus guarding  the  entry,  past  a  whole,  series  of  fear- 
ful brutes  and  monsters,  serpents,  and  crocodiles. 
Finally  it  enters  the  fellowship  of  the  Sun-god  Ra. 
The  inscription  upon  a  royal  tomb  reads :  "  These 
have  found  mercy  in  the  eyes  of  the  great  god,  and 
dwell  in  places  of  glory,  where  they  enjoy  heavenly 
life;  the  bodies  they  have  left  sleep  for  ever  in  the 
grave,  w^hile  the  righteous  rejoice  to  behold  the 
highest  of  the  gods  face  to  face."  ^ 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  heart  of  the  dead  is 
found  to  be  too  light,  if  he  had  given  himself  up  to 
evil  living  and  uncleanness,  he  is  despatched,  on  his 
issuing  from  the  entrance  hall,  into  the  kingdom  of 
darkness,  into  hell,  over  the  five-and-seventy  depart- 
ments whereof  rule  fearful  demons  armed  with 
swords.  An  inscription  placed  above  each  depart- 
ment relates  for  what  sins  the  victims  are  suffering 
torture  and  also  the  nature  of  their  punishment. 
These  guilty  souls  are  black,  and  are  lashed  to  stakes 
while  their  red  familiars  hack  them  to  pieces  with 

Champollion's  Letters. 


THE  EGYPTIANS  59 

their  swords.  Others  are  hung  head  downwards,  or 
march,  headless,  in  long  columns.  In  yet  other  places 
souls  may  be  seen  dragging  after  them  the  heart 
which  has  been  torn  from  their  bleeding  breasts. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  complete  this  survey 
of  Egyptian  eschatology  with  an  exact  account  of 
the  interpretation  which  the  Egyptians  gave  of  the 
dogma  of  metempsychosis  and  of  the  part  which 
they  considered  it  to  play  in  the  future  life.  Un- 
fortunately, we  are  still  not  in  a  position  to  do  so. 
It  would,  however,  seem  likely  that  the  souls  of  the 
righteous  were  not  called  upon  to  undergo  reincar- 
nation in  the  body  of  another  man,  much  less  of 
an  animal.  The  drawings  on  graves  always  depict 
the  souls  dwelling  happily  in  the  centre  of  the  sun, 
while  their  bodies  still  sleep  in  the  tomb.  We  should 
note,  however,  that  the  Egyptians  believed  in  a  final 
resurrection,  when  man  was  to  rise  again  in  all  his 
completeness.  This  favour  was  limited  to  the  right- 
eous. The  purified  soul  was  to  return  to  the  body 
which  it  had  inhabited  during  its  earthly  existence, 
and  was  to  pour  into  it  the  breath  of  life,  subse- 
quently leading  it  away  to  the  heaven  of  the  blessed. 

Reembodiment  in  animals  was  doubtless  entirely 
reserved  for  the  souls  of  the  wicked,  and  even  then 
'the  animals  must  have  been  unclean,  seeing  that  the 
others  were  deemed  sacred  and  capable  of  receiving 
a  divine  spirit.  This,  however,  is  a  point  of  which 
it  is  difficult  to  give  an  explanation  at  present,  for 
we  cannot  understand  upon  what  motive  the  Egyp- 
tians approved  of  offering  divine  honours  to  certain 
animals,  such  as  the  ox  Apis. 


60  FUTURE  LIFE 

Perhaps  we  should  beHeve,  as  do  certain  writers, 
that  these  animals  stood  only  for  mere  symbols  of 
divinity,  and  formed,  in  fact,  a  kind  of  living  statues, 
better  able  than  an  inanimate  object  to  manifest  that 
divine  essence  inhabiting  every  man. 

Whatever  we  are  to  believe  as  to  their  conception 
of  metempsychosis,  we  can  at  any  rate  be  certain 
that  faith  in  an  after-life  was  implicitly  held  by  all 
the  Egyptians.  It  has  influenced  all  their  institu- 
tions, supplied  the  motive  of  all  their  doings.  All 
the  accounts  of  ancient  Egypt  which  have  come  down 
to  us  are  at  one  upon  this  point.  But  it  is  useful  to 
show  how  these  receive  confirmation  in  the  monu- 
ments, the  meaning  of  which  has  been  forgotten. 
This  is  but  a  fresh  appreciation  of  the  general 
method  contrived  by  M.  Soldi  for  the  study  of  the 
so-called  holy  language  of  prehistoric  remains,  and 
which  led  to  the  curious  -observations  mentioned  in 
Chapter  II.  By  means  of  this  method  we  get,  as  it 
were,  a  living  insight  into  the  fundamental  notions 
entertained  by  the  Egyptians  as  to  the  way  in  which 
life  is  perpetuated  in  the  universe,  and  as  to  the 
modus  operandi  of  immortality.  They  had,  in  fact, 
the  same  general  conception  that  was  formed  by 
primitive  humanity,  according  to  the  works  of  M. 
Soldi. 

The  Egyptians,  like  primitive  man,  viewed  the 
sun  as  the  sole  creator,  acting  by  the  emission  of 
germs  charged  with  his  creative  power,  —  germs  that 
in  their  turn  bring  about  the  evolution  of  beings 
by  inducing  the  conflux  of  the  atoms  suitable  for  the 
production  of  the  required  type.    The  creative  power 


THE  EGYPTIANS  61 

of  solar  germs  likewise  acts  upon  the  bodies  of  the 
dead,  insufflating  them  with  that  Hfe  which  is  to 
bring  about  the  resurrection.  This  is  a  process  which 
we  find  constantly  represented  in  the  hieroglyphical 
paintings.  In  some  pictures  we  see  lines  of  divine 
germs  travelling  toward  the  principal  organs  of  the 
mummy  about  to  be  resuscitated,  upon  whose  heart 
is  to  be  observed  the  creative  symbol,  the  sun  itself, 
denoting  the  awakening  soul.  In  yet  other  draw- 
ings the  soul  is  figured  by  a  circular  germ  placed  in 
the  middle  of  a  crescent,  the  kert,  symbolising  the 
body,  into  which  it  penetrates  as  into  a  cave.  Oc- 
casionally the  return  to  life  of  the  mummy  is  typi- 
fied by  a  libation  of  water.  The  outpoured  liquid  is 
looked  upon  as  being  of  the  very  substance  of  Osiris, 
the  life  of  the  soul,  and  it  is  symbolised  by  the 
hieroglyph  meaning  life. 

At  other  times  the  soul  is  denoted  by  certain  ani- 
mals, which  typify  the  idea  of  the  transformation 
brought  about  by  death.  Thus  among  the  insects 
are  encountered  the  butterfly,  the  metamorphosed 
caterpillar,  a  very  appropriate  symbol  indeed  where- 
with to  represent  the  freedom  of  the  soul  as  it  bursts 
from  its  terrestrial  prison-house,  as  does  a  winged 
insect  from  the  chrysalis.  Thus,  forming  the  hiero- 
glyph for  "  generation  "  we  find  the  scarabaeus,  — 
kephra,  —  which  buries  itself  in  the  earth  during 
the  six  winter  months  in  order  to  appear  again  in 
the  following  Spring.  Then  there  is  the  bee,  which 
also  finds  its  place  among  the  hieroglyphs;  and  cer- 
tain birds  are  also  employed,  whose  chief  charac- 
teristics are  the  head  lit  up  by  its  central  eye,  and  the 
prominent  beak.     The  outline  pictures  derived  from 


62  FUTURE  LIFE 

the  heron,  the  crane,  and  the  hawk  sufficiently  remind 
one  of  the  solar  hieroglyph,  composed  of  a  circle 
with  central  dot,  and  having  a  triangular  flame  pro- 
truding from  the  side. 

Elsewhere  we  meet  with  the  tgg,  —  omphalos,  — 
the  envelope  containing  the  god,  the  future  entity, 
and  this  symbol  is  itself  often  represented  by  ser- 
pents interlaced;  for  snakes  are  considered  as  the 
fertilising  element  par  excellence.  This  symbol  is 
also  to  be  met  with  among  the  Gauls,  and  it  is  well 
known  that  the  Greeks  were  acquainted  with  it,  for 
it  formed  part  of  the  caduceus  of  Hermes. 

Whatever  the  case  may  be,  it  is  interesting  to 
remark  that  the  Egyptians  represented  resurrection 
by  the  concourse  of  the  proper  atoms,  thus  giving 
us  the  first  rough  outline  of  that  atomic  theory  to 
be  expounded  later  by  the  Greek  Heracleitus,  which 
still  forms  the  basis  of  modern  scientific  ideas. 


CHAPTER    VI 

THE    HINDUS 

Ancestor-worship  among  the  Hindus.  —  Interdependence  of  the  Living 
and  the  Dead.  —  Similarity  between  the  Laws  of  the  Chinese  and 
of  the  Hindus  for  supplying  Heirs  to  Men  who  have  no  Sons.  — 
The  Soul's  Destiny  as  stated  in  the  Laws  of  Manu,  and  in  the 
Vedas.  —  Metempsychosis  the  Gause  of  the  Hindu's  Reverence  for 
all  Living  Things.  —  The  Moksha  of  the  Brahmins,  the  Nirvana  of 
the  Buddhists.  —  Extracts  from  the  Sacred  Books  on  Reincarna- 
tion.—The  Theory  expanded  in  Hindu  Poetry.  —  Abhorrence  of 
the  Hindus  for  Reincarnation.  —  Asceticism  and  Meditation  the  best 
Means  for  shortening  the  Cycle.  —  Reincarnation  the  Basis  of 
Caste.  —  The  Buddhist  Doctrine  of  the  Brotherhood  of  Man. — 
Antagonistic  Views  of  the  three  Principal  Schools  concerning  the 
State  of  the  Soul  after  Death.  —  Hindu  View  of  the  Composition  of 
the  Soul  similar  to  the  Egyptian.  —  Classification  of  the  Soul's  Ele- 
ments. —  Yama,  Arbiter  of  the  Soul's  Destiny. 

THE  idea  of  immortality,  at  least  in  the  ab- 
stract is,  so  to  speak,  inherent  in  the  Hindu 
mind.  It  forms  the  basis  of  all  the  philo- 
sophical speculations  and  religioiis  beliefs  of  that 
meditative  race,  which,  though  it  has  lost  itself  in  con- 
templation and  in  giving  birth  to  diverse  systems,  has 
always  retained  unwavering  faith  in  the  reality  of  an 
invisible  world,  the  scene  of  after-life. 

At  the  outset  of  their  history  the  Hindus  also,  like 
the  rest  of  primitive  man,  were  believers  in  collective 
ancestor-worship.  Their  present  religion,  sectarian 
Brahminism,  still  regards  the  souls  of  the  forefathers 
as  obliged  to  protect  the  descendants,  and  calls  upon 
them  to  do  so.  The  souls  are  pitri,  dwelling  in  the 
sun,  where  they  enjoy  a  greater  or  less  degree  of 
purity,  depending  upon  the  deeds  of  their  past  life. 


64  FUTURE  LIFE 

They  are  distributed  into  seven  distinct  classes,  of 
which  the  first  three  alone  contain  the  pure  spirits; 
whilst  in  the  other  four  the  spiritual  element,  not  yet 
completely  freed  from  matter,  remains  surrounded  by 
a  kind  of  half-fluid  envelope,  more  or  less  dense. 

The  first  progenitors  of  mankind,  who  discovered 
fire  and  invented  sacrifice  and  prayer,  are  the  demi- 
gods, rishis,  residing  in  the  starry  constellations, 
which  they  are  severally  commissioned  to  govern. 

Manu,  the  great  legislator  who  established  the 
fundamental  institutions  of  the  Hindu  race,  informs 
us  that  to  be  admitted  to  heaven  man  must  rely  only 
upon  the  efilicacy  of  the  sacrifices  which  it  is  the  duty 
of  his  son  to  offer  on  his  grave,  and  the  unhappy 
wretch  that  arrives  in  the  mysterious  darkness  of  the 
other  world  and  has  left  no  son  behind  him  is  like 
the  mad  fisher  who  trusts  himself  rudderless  upon  the 
measureless  deep  and  yet  thinks  to  reach  the  haven. 

The  funeral  ceremonies  and  banquets  —  sradas  — 
are  particularly  pleasing  to  the  souls  of  the  departed, 
and  Manu  minutely  regulates  the  way  in  which  they 
are  to  be  carried  out.  The  father  of  a  family  must 
invite  the  holy  Brahmins  thrice  yearly  to  perform  the 
solemn  rites,  but  he  must  not  omit  to  offer  daily  the 
prescribed  sacrifice  forming  part  of  the  five  oblations. 
During  the  repast  the  Brahmin  divides  the  consecrated 
cake  among  those  present,  beginning  with  the  Brah- 
mins and  then  passing  on  to  the  members  of  the  family 
in  order  of  precedence,  at  the  same  time  uttering  the 
following  words :  "  May  this  hallowed  food  make 
your  bodies  pure,  and  may  the  pious  prayers  you  are 
about  to  offer  open  heaven  —  svarga  —  to  the  souls 
of  your  ancestors." 


THE  HINDUS  65 

The  head  of  the  family  then  calls  by  name  upon  all 
the  deceased  forefathers,  from  the  grandfather  of  his 
grandfather  downwards.  The  grateful  manes  there- 
upon put  up  the  following  prayer  on  behalf  of  their 
living  posterity: 

"  May  our  family  remaining  upon  earth  wax  con- 
tinually in  numbers,  and  become  exalted  through  gen- 
erosity, virtue,  and  adherence  to  the  revealed  truths. 

"  May  the  sons  and  descendants  of  our  sons  never 
fail  to  offer  us  rice  boiled  in  milk,  honey,  and  clarified 
butter,  on  the  thirteenth  day  of  the  moon,  at  the  hour 
when  the  shadow  of  the  elephant  sinks  in  the  east. 

"  Each  ritual  oblation  made  by  a  son  pure  of  heart 
cleanses  the  souls  of  his  ancestors  and  earns  for  them 
happiness  unending  in  the  other  world." 

In  their  anxiety  to  ensure  the  perpetuation  of  the 
family,  the  laws  of  Manu  also  prescribe  that  the  Hin- 
dus shall  acquire  children  by  adoption  if  they  have 
none  by  legitimate  wedlock ;  and  they  also  allow  them 
to  seek  children  from  extra-conjugal  unions,  which 
must,  however,  be  contracted  with  due  observances. 
This  provision  is  so  far  analogous  to  that  of  the 
Chinese  which  we  have  already  mentioned,  but  it  goes 
on  to  contemplate  the  substitution  of  a  brother  or  a 
close  relation  for  the  husband.  The  child  born  of  such 
a  union  is  reputed  the  issue  of  the  husband,  and  the 
wife  is  not  permitted  to  renew  the  union. 

When  a  husband  dies  without  issue,  we  meet  with 
an  analogous  provision,  which  is  also  to  be  found  in 
the  Bible :  "  Let  the  young  wife  whose  husband  is 
just  dead  be  married  anew  by  the  husband's  own 
brother  (or  in  default  of  such,  by  the  nearest  relation) 
as  if  she  were  still  the  wife  of  the  dead  brother ;  and 

5 


ee  FUTURE  LIFE 

the  child  born  of  this  union  shall  be  held  to  be  the  son 
of  the  deceased." 

Side  by  side  with  these  institutions  characteristic 
of  collective  ancestor-worship,  the  early  Hindus  al- 
ready believed  in  a  species  of  semi-conscious  immor- 
tality involving  responsibility  for  the  deeds  of  this 
life,  and  out  of  this  belief  they  evolved  the  doctrine 
of  metempsychosis,  v/hich  was  afterwards  adopted  by 
all  their  schools  of  philosophy. 

Already  in  the  laws  of  Manu  appeared  the  following 
assertions : 

"  Man  is  born  alone,  dies  alone,  and  alone  is  rewarded  for  his 
good  deeds  or  chastised  for  his  wickednesses. 

"  So  soon  as  his  mortal  remains  have  been  given  over  to  the 
fire  or  the  earth,  like  a  log  or  a  piece  of  clay,  the  relations  leave 
him,  but  virtue  follows  his  soul. 

"  The  body,  of  which  the  bones  are  the  timbers,  is  subject  to 
age  and  decrepitude,  sorrow  and  sickness,  and  should  be  left 
with  joy  by  the  righteous. 

"All  will  vanish  in  earthly  corruption,  alone  the  good  deeds  of 
the  soul  shall  not  perish. 

"  But  the  heavenly  dwelling  is  to  be  won  only  by  meditation  on 
the  divine  essence.  Even  as  the  tree  fallen  in  the  river  follows 
the  stream  which  sweeps  it  along ;  even  as  the  bird  spurns  its 
nest  and  soars  to  the  skies,  so  shall  the  soul  soar  to  the  dwelling 
of  Brahma,  casting  aside  its  perishable  raiment." 

The  Vedas,  on  the  other  hand,  which  are  the  most 
ancient  and  venerated  of  the  holy  books,  the  fountain- 
head  of  truth  and  law  and  science,  likewise  proclaim 
that  death  does  not  wholly  annihilate  man,  for  the 
bodies  which  come  to  an  end  enfold  an  eternal  soul, 
indestructible  and  unchangeable. 

"  When  the  man  is  smitten  of  death,  his  breath 
goeth  back  to  Vaya,  his  life  to  the  sun.     But  there 


THE  HINDUS  67 

remains  of  him  that  which  is  undying.  It  is  that,  O 
Agni,  that  thou  must  warm  with  thy  rays,  fire  with 
thy  flames,  O  Jatavedas.  In  that  glorious  body  which 
thou  hast  made,  carry  it  to  the  world  of  the  righteous." 

Elsewhere  the  Vedas  speak  in  these  terms  of  the 
fate  of  the  soul  after  death : 

"  The  soul  hieth  to  the  world  to  which  its  deeds 
belong.  It  goeth  to  the  world  of  the  sun,  if  it  hath 
done  deeds  that  lead  it  thither ;  it  goeth  to  the  world 
of  the  Creator,  if  it  hath  done  deeds  that  lead  it  to 
the  world  of  the  Creator." 

This  faith  in  survival,  underlying  every  output  of 
the  Hindu  mind,  was  completed  by  the  doctrine  of 
metempsychosis,  which  is  equally  at  the  root  of  the 
two  great  religions,  Brahminism  and  Buddhism. 

The  most  widely  differing  philosophic  schools, 
which  have  followed  one  upon  another  in  the  course 
of  ages,  all  admit  this  notion  of  reembodiment,  which 
they  state  more  or  less  obscurely,  and  often  extend 
even  to  animals.  This  thought  it  is  which  inspires  the 
Hindus  with  that  wondrous  reverence  for  all  living 
things,  animals,  and  even  plants.  After  a  long  series 
of  reembodiments  the  soul  attains  freedom,  which  is 
the  one  capital  object  of  human  existence.  This  is  the 
moksha  of  the  Brahmins,  the  nirvana  of  the  Buddhists. 
It  answers  to  a  kind  of  absence  of  all  thought  and 
activity,  and  constitutes  supreme  happiness. 

The  theory  of  reincarnations  is  constantly  put 
forward  in  Hindu  literature.  It  is  hardly  necessary 
to  quote  passages  in  support  of  it,  but  we  nevertheless 
think  that  a  few  extracts  from  the  sacred  books  will 
be  of  interest.  The  doctrine  is  not  explicitly  laid  down 
by  the  Vedas,  in  which  the  Brahmins  have,  however, 


68  FUTURE  LIFE 

succeeded  in  discovering  it,  with  the  aid  of  such  pas- 
sages as  this: 

"  What  avails  it  here  below  to  have  desires  and 
to  seek  pleasures  of  the  senses?  In  dying  we  only 
contract  fresh  bonds  with  other  bodies  in  other 
worlds." 

The  doctrine  is  seen  more  clearly  indicated  in  the 
Brahmanas  and  Upanishads.  But  later  it  took 
strength  under  the  influence  of  the  philosophical 
schools,  and  rapidly  became  a  universal  dogma. 

In  the  "  Bhagavad-Gita,"  or  Song  of  the  Blessed, 
Prince  Arjuna,  at  the  point  of  giving  battle,  recog- 
nises beloved  relations  in  the  hostile  army,  and  being 
overwhelmed  with  grief  at  the  thought  that  he 
might  cause  their  death  in  the  struggle,  he  is  con- 
soled by  Krishna,  who  reveals  to  him  the  doctrine  of 
transmigration  : 

"  Those  bodies  that  vanish  are  gifted  with  an 
eternal  soul,  which  cannot  be  destroyed.  He  that 
thinks  to  slay  it,  or  that  it  is  slayable,  errs. 

"  He  that  hath  weighed  the  secret  of  my  birth  and 
work  divine  returneth  no  more  to  a  new  birth ;  when 
he  quitteth  his  body,  he  cometh  back  to  me. 

"  I  have  had  many  births,  and  thou  likewise,  Ar- 
juna; I  know  them  all,  but  thou  knowest  not.  My 
soul  is  the  stay  of  beings  that  have  no  being  in  them ; 
my  soul  is  their  being." 

The  same  thing  is  asserted  in  the  Mahabarata : 

"  Even  as  when  he  casteth  off  an  old  garment  man 
clothes  himself  in  new  raiment,  even  so  the  soul,  cast- 
ing off  the  worn-out  body,  takes  on  a  new  body,  avoids 
the  fatal  paths  leading  to  hell,  works  for  its  salvation, 
and  proceeds  toward  heaven." 


THE  HINDUS  69 

The  theory  of  reembodiment  was  In  Hindu  poetry 
expanded  in  a  manner  which  at  the  first  glance  ap- 
pears particularly  strange.  In  the  Ramayana  we  hear 
Vishnu  declaring  to  Rama  that  he  is  embodied  in  all 
things  excellent  and  good.  Among  the  rivers  he  is 
the  Ganges,  and  among  the  warriors  he  is  Rama 
himself,  to  whom  he  is  speaking.  We  immediately 
grasp  the  conception  according  to  which  living  beings 
inclose  a  divine  emanation.  That  emanation,  on  be- 
coming embodied  in  matter,  acquires  a  new  conscious- 
ness depending  upon  the  perceptible  form  which  it 
takes  on ;  at  the  same  time  it  loses  all  clear  notion  of 
its  spiritual  origin,  of  which  during  sensitive  life  it 
retains  but  a  dim  memory. 

With  the  majority  of  ancient  peoples,  the  idea  that 
the  soul  is  called  to  a  continued  course  of  improve- 
ment, carried  on  through  numberless  existences,  'led 
to  a  very  general  desire  for  betterment,  a  need  for 
activity,  for  perseverance  in  enterprise,  but  among  the 
Hindus  it  produced  precisely  contrary  results. 

The  transmigration  of  souls,  the  perpetual  journey- 
ings  through  life  after  life,  —  the  circle  of  gwynfyd, 
— which  the  Gauls  accepted  not  with  sorrow,  but  with 
a  longing  to  enjoy  the  new  existence  which  awaited 
them,  is  by  the  Hindu  rejected  with  horror;  for  he 
sees  therein  the  forced  abode  in  a  world  of  evil  and 
ignorance  which  should  be  left  behind  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible. The  rival  schools  of  philosophy  and  the  most 
antagonistic  religious  sects  are  at  one  in  their  anxiety 
to  put  a  period  to  these  endless  reembodiments,  the 
thought  of  which  haunts  them.  Their  one  difference 
is  as  to  the  most  effectual  means  of  attaining  this  end. 

In  the  realm  of  religious  faith  this  divergency  of 


70  FUTURE  LIFE 

opinion  led  to  the  great  schisms  of  Djainism  and 
Buddhism,  and  to  the  formation  of  the  numberless 
sects  into  which  Brahminism  is  now  divided.  They 
are  all,  however,  agreed  in  recognising  the  "  ignorant 
condition  of  the  soul,"  avidya,  to  be  the  principal 
cause  prolonging  the  cycle  of  reincarnation,  and  this 
must  be  combated  by  knowledge,  vidya,  to  be  acquired 
by  asceticism  and  meditation.  Asceticism  breeds  in  us 
tapas,  that  fertilising  warmth  which,  by  giving  the 
soul  supernatural  powers,  can  raise  it  to  the  heavenly 
regions,  and  by  which  the  Asuras  tried  of  old  to  raise 
themselves  into  gods.  Asceticism  also  permits  of  a 
useful  recourse  to  meditation,  the  principal  means  of 
deliverance,  according  to  the  yoga  school.  It  is  by 
meditation  alone,  writes  M.  de  Milloue,  that  the  wise 
man  can  come  to  feel  the  unreality  of  the  external 
world  and  to  understand  the  identity  of  his  being  with 
the  universal  soul;  so  soon  as  he  grasps  this,  he  is 
sure  of  reabsorption  at  death.  Ecstatic  meditation  is 
thus  the  most  ready  means  of  attaining  the  blessed 
condition  of  nirvana,  that  scarcely  conscious  calm, 
which  with  our  Occidental  notions,  it  is  so  difficult  for 
us  to  comprehend,  but  which  seems  to  border  upon 
annihilation.  The  doctrine  does  not  shrink  from  its 
most  disastrous  and  pessimistic  consequences;  it  de- 
clares the  world  essentially  wicked,  and  proscribes  all 
activity.  Actions,  whether  good  or  evil,  are  always  j 
baneful,  because  they  tend  to  prolong  the  period  ofi 
probationary  reincarnations. 

We  shall  not  push  the  doctrine  of  transmigration 
any  further  home;  we  have  mentioned  it  chiefly  to 
show  the  different  consequences  in  which  it  may  re- 
sult according  to  racial  temperament.    We  must  not, 


THE  HINDUS  71 

however,  omit  to  remark  that  this  conception  of 
reincarnation  furnished  Brahmanism  with  its  chief 
justificatory  argument  in  favour  of  the  rigid  caste- 
distinctions  which  seem  to  us  so  unnatural.  Brah- 
minism  looks  upon  birth  in  the  inferior  castes,  sudras 
and  pariahs,  as  the  punishment  for  faults  committed  in 
a  previous  existence.  It  is,  in  its  view,  an  ineradicable 
mark  or  seal  of  infamy,  stamped  by  the  very  law  of 
karma,  and  nobody  can  raise  the  impious  claim  to 
dispute  it. 

It  is  easily  seen  to  what  odious  consequences  such 
a  theory  may  lead,  and  we  can  well  understand 
the  enthusiastic  echo  roused  in  the  multitude  of  the 
outcast  by  the  proclamation  of  the  Buddhist  schism, 
when  Sakyamuni  displayed  the  brotherhood  of  man 
and  shattered  the  social  barriers  raised  by  the  Brah- 
mins under  the  doctrinal  aegis. 

Before  finishing  with  the  Hindus  we  shall  recall 
the  notions  held  by  the  great  philosophical  schools 
known  as  Darthanas,  concerning  the  human  soul,  and 
its  abode,  for  a  time  at  least,  after  death.  We  shall 
chiefly  insist  upon  the  three  principal  schools,  which 
represent  antagonistic  doctrines,  namely,  the  Nyaya, 
Vedanta,  and  Sankhya  schools. 

The  Nyaya  school,  which  espouses  spiritualistic  ^^ 
ideas,  affirms  the  conscious  immortality  of  man's  soul, 
wherein  it  distinguishes  two  elements,  —  atman,  or 
sensitivity,  and  manas,  or  intellect.  The  Vedanta 
school  also  allows  this  distinction,  but  adds  a  third 
element,  prana,  the  divine  breath ;  it  looks  upon  the 
soul  as  a  spark  emanating  from  Brahma,  which  has 
come  to  animate  matter,  but  has  lost  the  memory  of 
its  heavenly  origin. 


7^  FUTURE  LIFE 

The  Sankhya  school  is  purely  materialistic,  and 
draws  its  inspiration  from  the  doctrines  of  Buddhism 
and  Djainism.  It  considers  matter,  prakriti,  to  have 
existed  from  all  eternity  side  by  side  with  spirits, 
purusha.  Prakriti  is  active  but  unreasoning,  and  in- 
capable alone  of  originating  organic  forms,  and  can 
only  produce  illusions,  maya.  By  means  of  these 
illusions  it  captures  purusha  which  allow  themselves 
to  be  drawn  within  the  sphere  of  attraction  and  unite 
with  it  in  the  creation  of  beings.  The  purusha  sub- 
sequently recognise  the  fault  they  have  committed, 
and  endeavour  to  escape  from  the  meshes  of  prakriti, 
but  they  can  only  do  so  by  passing  through  the  cycle 
of  existences  and  freeing  themselves  by  penitences, 
tapas,  so  as  to  deserve  to  return  to  the  invisible  world 
from  which  they  emanate.  Briefly,  it  may  be  said 
that  the  philosophical  systems,  while  affirming  im- 
mortality, differ  among  themselves  in  that  they  do  not 
all  admit  the  survival  of  consciousness,  and  they  are 
also  unlike  in  their  doctrinal  teaching.  The  two 
great  Buddhist  schools  of  North  and  South  differ 
precisely  on  this  point,  which  was  never  properly 
decided  by  Buddha.  The  Southern  school,  Hinayana, 
considers  that  conscious  survival  is  not  vouchsafed 
to  the  soul  as  we  know  it  in  the  present  life,  but  only 
to  its  karma,  which  is  a  kind  of  abstract  entity  repre- 
senting the  necessary  consequences  of  its  acts.  It  is 
this  karma  which  determines  the  features  of  the  new 
being  which  it  summons  into  existence,  the  uncon- 
scious perpetuator  of  him  with  whose  moral  inheri- 
tance it  is  endowed.  The  karma  frames  its  character 
and  determines  the  main  lines  of  its  future  career, 
always  keeping  in  view  past  deeds,  which  must  be 


THE  HINDUS  73 

rewarded.  Thus  the  karma  becomes  the  collective 
residue  of  a  whole  series  of  mutually  unacquainted 
beings,  but  whose  continuity  in  time  it  maintains  in 
order  to  furnish  the  satisfactions  demanded  by  imma- 
nent justice.  It  holds  them  all  together,  forming,  as 
it  were,  the  moral  link  between  the  first  and  the  last 
of  the  series.  The  various  beings  which  appear  suc- 
cessively as  unconscious  manifestations  of  the  karma 
are  entirely  ignorant  of  the  deeds  of  which  they  are 
undergoing  the  consequences.  But  this  unconscious- 
ness is  not  destined  to  last  forever;  for  the  memory 
of  past  existences  still  remains  unimpaired  in  the 
depths  of  the  karma,  and  the  soul,  when  it  has  at- 
tained to  sanctity,  will  be  able  to  grasp  and  under- 
stand that  memory. 

This  weird  conception  is  no  monopoly  of  the  Hin- 
dus; we  meet  with  it  again  among  the  Chaldeans, 
as  we  shall  see  when  we  come  to  talk  of  the  kerdar 
and  the  ferohers.  Let  us  recollect  that,  as  far  as 
regards  the  nature  of  the  soul,  the  Hindus  of  to-day 
agree  with  the  ancient  Egyptians  in  viewing  it  as 
made  up  of  a  number  of  fluid-like,  invisible  elements 
centred  about  an  immaterial  principle.  Each  of  these 
elements  corresponds  to  a  particular  faculty  of  the 
soul,  and  may  therefore  be  considered  as  relatively 
independent  of  the  others.  The  element  is  most  subtle 
and  attenuated  in  proportion  as  the  corresponding 
faculty  is  higher  and  more  characteristic  of  man. 

To  be  sure,  it  is  diflicult  to  classify  these  elements 
methodically,  and  this  would  not  have  suited  the 
vague  and  hazy  notions  of  the  Hindu.  Yet,  says 
Baron  Textor  de  Ravisi,  in  a  paper  laid  before  the 
Provincial  Congress  of  Orientalists  held  at  St.  Etienne 


74  FUTURE  LIFE 

in  1875,  it  seems  possible  to  distinguish  seven,  which 
may  be  arranged  in  the  following  order  and  assimi- 
lated to  the  Egyptian  classification: 

Hindu  Egyptian 


I. 

2. 

3- 

4- 

Physical  body. 
Vitality. 
Astral  body. 
Animal  soul. 

Rupa. 

Jiva. 

Linga  chavira. 

Kama  Rupa. 

Xa. 
Hati. 
Tet. 
Xaib. 

5- 

Human  soul. 

Manas. 

Sahu. 

6. 

Spiritual  soul. 

Buddhi. 

Ra. 

7- 

Divine  spirit. 

Atma. 

Ka. 

At  death  the  astral  body,  accompanied  by  the  su- 
perior elements,  detaches  itself  from  the  physical 
body,  which  is  now  deprived  of  vitality ;  it  thus  pre- 
serves a  complete  individuality,  which,  according  as 
it  is  good  or  bad,  determines  what  place  it  shall  hence- 
forth inhabit  as  the  consequence  of  its  terrestrial 
existence. 

According  to  the  doctrine  of  modern  Hinduism  the 
final  decision  regulating  the  soul's  destiny  after  death 
is  made  by  the  god  Yama,  who  has  already  appeared 
in  the  Vedas  as  ruler  of  the  sun ;  he  is  a  son  or  form 
of  Agni,  king  of  the  pitri,  who  now  presides  over  the 
administration  of  hell,  and  sees  to  the  proper  carrying 
out  of  his  sentences.  As  M.  de  Milloue  puts  it,  he 
combines  the  functions  of  Pluto  and  Minos.  His 
throne  is  in  the  palace  of  Katichi,  and  he  is  aided  by  a 
recorder,  Chitragrupta,  and  he  has  before  him  the 
fatal  book  "  Agra  Sandhani,"  wherein  are  written  the 
deeds  of  the  dead.  After  examining  them,  he  passes 
the  dread  sentence  by  virtue  of  which  the  disembodied 
soul  will  pass  either  to  heaven  or  hell,  or  perhaps  back 
to  earth  to  be  reincarnated.     He  is  a  pitiless  judge 


THE  HINDUS  76 

whom  naught  can  bend,  for  he  is  impassive  as  the  law 
of  karma  which  he  administers. 

These  more  definite  notions,  wherein  is  seen  the 
idea  of  an  after-Hfe,  have  gradually  ousted  in  the 
popular  belief,  whether  of  Brahmin  or  Buddhist, 
the  too  abstract  conceptions  of  moksha  and  nirvana. 
Both  religions  nowadays  recognise  a  distinct  heaven 
(the  svarga  of  Brahminism  and  the  sukharati  of 
Northern  Buddhism),  and  both  combine,  under  the 
name  naraka,  various  degrees  of  hell,  which  visit  all 
imaginable  tortures  upon  the  souls  of  evil-doers.  As 
for  those  souls  which,  without  having  been  completely 
bad,  nevertheless  have  sins  to  expiate,  they  are  sent 
to  intermediate  places  set  apart  for  them,  kama  loka 
and  rupa  loka. 


CHAPTER   VII 

THE   CHALDEANS 

The  Religion  of  the  Magi  Lofty  in  its  Conceptions  and  Free  from  Idola- 
atry.  —  Chaldeans  the  Founders  of  Astronomy.  —  Their  Belief  in  a 
Complex  Soul,  a  Bodily  Resurrection,  the  Soul's  Immortality,  and 
Rewards  and  Punishments  after  Death.  —  A  Parsee  Priest's  Sum- 
mary of  the  Doctrine  of  the  Nature  of  the  Soul.  —  Opinions  of  the 
Magi  on  the  Future  Life  opposed  by  Jinandii  Modhi  in  1893.  —  The 
Wicked  to  be  purified  in  Hell  and  admitted  to  Heaven. — Ceaseless 
Struggle  between  Ahura-Mazda,  the  Spirit  of  Good,  and  Agramai- 
Nyons,  the  Spirit  of  Evil.  —  Evolution  of  the  Conception  of  a  Single 
God.  —  The  Eternal  Progress  of  the  Soul  toward  Perfection.  — 
Guardian  Angels  to  be  rewarded  according  to  the  Good  Deeds  per- 
formed under  their  Inspiration.  —  The  Prayer  to  the  Ferohers,  or 
Guardian  Angels.  —  The  Progress  and  Kinship  of  all  Living  Be- 
ings, —  Respect  for  Women.  —  Monogamy. 

THE  more  we  come  to  know  of  the  Chaldeans, 
the  further  we  find  their  history  receding 
into  the  mists  of  antiquity.  In  point  of 
age  that  history  can  compete  with  that  of  Egypt, 
and  acquires  greater  authority  in  our  eyes  in  pro- 
portion as  its  origins  come  nearer  to  those  of  man- 
kind itself. 

The  Magi  of  Chaldea  undoubtedly  possessed  the 
profoundest  knowledge  to  which  their  contempora- 
ries were  able  to  attain.  They  founded  a  religion 
involving  lofty  conceptions  and  free  from  that  ad- 
mixture of  idolatry  against  which  the  Egyptians  were 
unable  to  guard  themselves.  They  were  able  to  adore 
godhead  without  seeking  for  it  in  animals,  nor  did 


THE  CHALDEANS  77 

they  feel  the  necessity  for  any  other  symbols  than 
the  airy,  ethereal  flame  shooting  heavenward  from 
the  fermented  libation  {homo)  placed  upon  the  sac- 
rificial altar. 

Maybe  they  were  the  first  to  make  consecutive 
observations  of  the  movements  of  the  stars,  and  in 
this  they  were  largely  assisted  by  the  special  facili- 
ties afiforded  by  the  Persian  climate ;  thus  they  came 
to  be  the  founders  of  astronomy,  the  science  which 
in  antiquity  shed  light  upon  all  others.  Likewise, 
concerning  the  constitution  of  man  they  held  pecu- 
liar views  which  it  would  be  interesting  to  recover, 
but  unhappily  in  this  direction  we  possess  only  vague 
second-hand  information.  The  only  holy  books  which 
have  come  down  to  us,  such  as  the  Zend  Avesta 
and  the  great  Persian  poem,  the  "  Masnavi-Manivi," 
give  few  particulars  upon  this  matter  and  practi- 
cally restrict  themselves  to  a  mere  summary  of 
their  fundamental  notions  concerning  a  posthumous 
existence. 

We  have  reason  to  suppose  that,  like  the  Egyp- 
tians, they  considered  the  soul,  which  they  called 
urvan,  to  be  a  complex  whole,  in  which  they  dis- 
tinguished especially  a  vital  principle,  ekimu,  having  a 
continuous  habitat  in  the  sepulchral  monument,  while 
the  spiritual  element  wings  its  way  to  the  land 
whence  there  is  no  returning.  It  is  known  also 
that  they  explicitly  accepted  the  idea  of  a  bodily 
resurrection,  to  take  place  by  the  power  of  the  god 
Marduk,  assisted  by  his  wife  Zarpanis.  All  ancient 
authors  concur  in  recognising  that  the  Zend  Avesta 
clearly  declares  the  soul's  immortality  and  the  eter- 
nity of  future  life.     Pausanias,  for  instance,  informs 


78  FUTURE  LIFE 

us  ^  that,  according  to  the  teaching  of  the  Magi,  the 
pure  will  go  to  the  bright  dwelling  of  Ormuzd, 
whereas  the  wicked  will  be  imprisoned  in  darkness. 
The  modern  Parsees,  who  to  this  day  carry  on  this 
ancient  religion,  still  maintain  the  doctrine  of  Zo- 
roaster upon  this  point.  This  is  shown  by  the  dec- 
larations made  on  their  behalf  at  the  Chicago 
Religious  Congress,  in  1893.  Mr.  Edward  Barucha, 
a  Parsee  priest  in  Bombay,  forwarded  an  interest- 
ing communication  to  the  Congress,  summarising 
as  follows  the  Mazdaean  doctrine  of  the  nature  of 
the  soul  of  man: 

"  The  undying  spiritual  element  was  created  before  the  body, 
and  both  were  united  at  birth  and  are  parted  at  death.  The 
soul,  which  comes  from  the  spirit-world,  is  possessed  of  various 
senses  and  faculties ;  it  enters  the  new-born  body,  out  of  which  it 
will  return  at  death  into  the  spiritual  world.  Zoroaster  teaches 
us  that  God  grants  to  the  soul  such  means  and  assistance  as  are 
requisite  for  the  carrying  out  of  its  allotted  task;  these  are 
knowledge,  wisdom,  judgment,  thought,  action,  free-will,  relig- 
ious conscience,  a  guardian  angel  or  beneficent  genius,  and  above 
all,  revelation.  At  the  resurrection  of  the  dead,  when  all  things 
shall  be  renewed  and  the  whole  of  creation  will  begin  over  again, 
the  souls  will  be  provided  with  new  bodies,  that  they  may  taste, 
in  the  life  to  come,  bliss  ineffable." 

The  faith  in  survival  among  the  ancient  Magi  was 
accompanied  at  the  same  time  by  incessant  preoccu- 
pation as  to  the  future  life;  a  lofty  sense  of  justice 
serving  as  their  point  of  view.  In  a  word,  they  did 
not  confine  themselves  to  the  simple  affirmation  of 
survival  which  has  been  made  by  humanity  from 
the  beginning  of  its  history,  but,  like  the  Egyptians, 
they  clung,  above  all,  to  the  idea  of  the  inevitable 

1  Book  IV,  chapter  xxii. 


THE  CHALDEANS  79 

reward  which  the  future  Hfe  must  apply  to  the  deeds 
of  the  Hfe  on  earth.  They,  too,  endeavoured  to  pic- 
ture to  themselves  beforehand  what  would  be  the 
judgment  ensuing  after  death,  and  to  forecast  the 
different  fates  awaiting  the  good  and  the  wicked. 
The  notions  at  which  they  arrived  were  discredited 
by  Mr.  Jinandii  Modhi  at  the  Chicago  Religious  Con- 
gress in  the  following  terms: 

"  The  Avesta,  as  well  as  earlier  Pehlvi  writings,  attaches  first- 
rate  importance  to  the  question  of  the  soul's  immortality,  because 
the  dogma  appears  to  be  morally  requisite.  Mazdaeism  incul- 
cates a  belief  in  heaven  and  hell.  Between  heaven  and  the  future 
world  it  places  a  bridge  named  Chinevat.  According  to  our 
book,  the  soul  of  a  man  after  death  wanders  for  three  days  over 
the  face  of  the  earth  under  the  guidance  of  the  angel  Serosch.  If 
the  deceased  was  a  man  of  piety  or  led  a  virtuous  life,  his  soul 
utters  the  words  :  *  Happy  is  he  whose  profit  is  not  only  his  own, 
but  also  that  of  others.'  If,  on  the  contrary,  he  was  a  wicked  man 
or  led  a  sinful  life,  his  soul  complains  bitterly :  *  Whither  shall  I 
betake  me,  or  in  what  country  shall  I  find  refuge  ? ' 

"At  nightfall  on  the  third  day  the  souls  of  the  dead  come  to 
the  bridge  of  Chinevat,  which  is  watched  by  the  angel  Meher 
Daver,  —  Meher  the  Judge,  —  with  whom  are  two  assistant  judges, 
the  angels  Rash nd  and  Astad.  The  first  represents  justice;  the 
second,  truth.  Before  these  three  judges  the  soul  is  summoned  to 
render  account  of  its  deeds,  and  is  weighed  by  Meher  Daver  in 
the  scales.  If  the  evil  deeds  are  heaviest,  even  by  ever  so 
little,  the  deceased  is  forbidden  to  cross  the  bridge,  and  is  hurled 
into  the  abysm  of  hell.  If  evil  and  good  are  equally  balanced, 
he  is  sent  to  an  abode  called  Hamast  Gehan,  answering  to  the 
Purgatory  of  Christianity  and  the  El-Araf  of  Mohammedanism. 
The  good  which  he  has  done  hinders  him  from  going  to  hell,  and 
the  evil  from  going  to  heaven." 

Be  it  added  that  this  division  of  souls,  terrible  as 
it  is,  does  not  last  for  ever,  but  only  till  the  end  of 
the  ages,  when  the  struggle  between  good  and  evil 


80  FUTURE  LIFE 

shall  itself  cease.  The  Avesta  tells  us  that  upon  the 
day  of  resurrection  all  the  souls  of  the  righteous 
shall  meet  upon  Mount  Berezat  in  the  chain  of 
Elbruz,  under  the  guidance  of  the  ministers  of  good 
spirits,  and  thereafter  the  wicked  shall  be  permitted 
to  join  them,  being  now  purified  by  pain  and  fire. 
All  men  will  then  become  blessed,  and  will  take 
on  bodies  of  light,  being  no  longer  in  need  of 
nutriment. 

Plutarch  tells  us  ^  that,  when  the  end  of  the  world 
shall  have  come,  even  the  most  wicked  of  the  dar- 
vands  will  become  pure  and  divine,  breathing  noth- 
ing but  purity,  and  will  offer  a  long  service  of  praise 
to  Ormuzd.  It  is  known,  moreover,  that  Mazdsean 
doctrine  is  mainly  based  upon  the  idea  of  the  cease- 
less antagonism  between  good  and  evil  which  is 
omnipresent  in  the  universe,  but  more  particularly 
actuates  mankind.  This  it  views  as  a  struggle  be- 
tween two  rival  genii:  Ahura  Mazda,  the  spirit  of 
good  and  source  of  true  life,  the  father  and  author 
of  truth,  who  guides  all  heavenly  movements,  and 
the  god  of  evil,  Agramai-Nyons,  who  inspires  all 
sinful  lusts  and  unrighteous  deeds. 

The  struggle  between  these  two  warring  principles 
will  last  as  long  as  mankind  itself,  and  will  continu- 
ally suffer  ups  and  downs  of  triumph  and  defeat. 
Nevertheless  it  will  not  extend  beyond  the  bounds 
of  time.  It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  good 
spirit  is  more  powerful  than  its  rival,  and  must  in- 
evitably be  victorious  at  the  day  of  resurrection. 

It  is  thus  clear  how  the  conception  of  a  single  God 
arose  by  degrees  out  of  this  earlier  dualism;  for, 
1  "  De  Isi  et  Osiri." 


THE  CHALDEANS  81 

being  quite  convinced  of  the  final  victory  of  good, 
we  are  led  to  the  conclusion  that  in  reality  the  world 
is  not  governed  by  two  evenly  balanced  and  antago- 
nistic powers,  but  by  the  providence  of  the  more 
powerful  of  the  two,  which  regulates  all  things  with 
a  view  to  its  final  victory ;  and  we  read  in  a  passage 
quoted  by  Menant,  author  of  an  "  Etude  sur  Zoro- 
astre,"  that  he  who  does  not  recognise  the  unity  of 
God  will  not  be  permitted  to  cross  the  bridge  of 
Chinevat,  but  will  be  condemned  to  remain  in  hell 
until  the  resurrection. 

In  the  belief  of  the  Mazdseans  the  ultimate  triumph 
of  the  God  of  good  will  inevitably  lead  to  the  con- 
version of  the  wicked,  because  after  the  defeat  of 
Ahriman  evil  will  no  longer  be  able  to  exist  in  the 
universe.  They  conceived  the  history  of  the  soul, 
moreover,  as  an  eternal  progress  toward  the  good, 
and  there  would  be  something  inconsistent  in  sup- 
posing that  a  soul  might  some  day  be  no  longer  in 
a  position  to  attain  the  good.  They  recognised,  in 
accordance  with  this  interesting  evolutionary  doc- 
trine, which  we  shall  meet  with  again  among  the 
Gauls,  that  this  continuous  ascending  movement  is 
carried  on  in  all  the  realms  of  the  universe  through 
which  the  soul,  at  first  unconscious,  has  already 
passed  before  reaching  the  world  of  man,  where  it 
appears  endowed  with  faculties  gradually  accumu- 
lated in  the  course  of  past  existences.  The  soul  is 
destined  to  improve  yet  further,  to  rise  in  future 
above  its  state,  to  free  itself  from  covetousness  and 
desire,  and  to  essay  countless  higher  grades  of 
intelligence. 

Throughout  this  endless  progress  the  soul  is  guided 

6 


82  FUTURE  LIFE 

by  the  fravashis  or  ferohers,  —  souls  created  by  God, 
bom  or  not  yet  born,  a  kind  of  superior  spirits,  among 
which  it  will  some  day  take  its  place.  These  fero- 
hers are,  in  fact,  guardian  angels,  having  the  same 
substance  with  the  soul  which  it  is  their  mission  to 
protect,  and  at  the  same  time  going  through  a  process 
of  development  parallel  to  that  of  the  soul,  the  fruit 
of  whose  virtuous  deeds  performed  under  their  in- 
spiration they  also  enjoy.  Placed  thus  at  the  sum-, 
mit  of  the  scale  of  beings,  the  ferohers  serve  as  ideal 
types  of  all  pure  existences;  but  the  great  law  of 
continual  perfection,  embracing  all  forms  of  life,  from 
lowest  to  highest,  compels  each  form  to  have  its  ideal 
type;  and  so  humanity  is  not  the  only  possessor  of 
these  protecting  spirits,  but  animals  also  have  their 
appropriate  ferohers,  which  are  the  souls  of  each 
different  species. 

The  ferohers  of  the  dead  are  the  beneficent  genii 
of  mankind.  They  live  in  real  communion  with  us, 
although  invisible.  Upon  the  last  ten  days  of  the 
year,  which  are  specially  set  apart  for  them,  they 
come  down  from  heaven  upon  earth  to  mingle  yet 
more  intimately  in  the  life  of  those  whom  they  love, 
and  to  receive  the  sacrifices  and  offerings  which  they 
require.  To  render  these  has  always  been,  as  we 
have  shown,  the  unremitting  care  of  primitive  peoples. 
The  prayer  to  the  ferohers  expresses  this  concern 
with  remarkable  intensity: 

"We  make  offering  to. the  good,  strong,  holy  ferohers  of  the 
righteous,  even  unto  those  that  come  down  from  their  habitation 
at  the  season  of  Hamaspath-maedha.  Then  do  they  spread 
themselves  over  the  earth  during  ten  nights  and  give  utterance  to 
their  desires  in  such  questions  as  these :  Who  shall  laud  us } 


THE  CHALDEANS  83 

Who  shall  make  sacrifice  unto  us  ?  Who  for  us  shall  spread  out 
an  offering  ?  Who  shall  call  to  us,  having  in  his  hand  the  milk  of 
cows,  and  a  garment,  and  uttering  the  prayers  which  bring 
purification  ? 

Then  do  the  strong  ferohers  of  the  righteous,  being  appeased, 
become  benign  and  beneficent,  and  they  bless  him  who  has 
brought  them  milk  of  kine,  and  a  garment,  with  a  prayer  for  pur- 
ity. '  Let  him  have  in  his  home  a  flock,  a  cow,  and  her  calves ; 
let  him  have  a  swift  steed  and  a  strong  bull.  Let  him  be  hon- 
oured and  deemed  wise.' " 

Each  man's  feroher  is  gradually  formed  during  life, 
and  being  an  invisible  form  (kerdar),  which,  as  it 
were,  epitomises  our  deeds  and  thoughts,  and  thus  by 
degrees  waxes  stronger,  it  gradually  reaches  heaven. 
This-  is,  in  other  words,  the  belief  in  the  karma  which 
we  noticed  among  the  Hindus.  The  karma,  it  will 
be  remembered,  was  the  necessary  outcome  of  our 
acts  during  life.  The  feroher,  however,  preserves  a 
more  personal  and  human  character,  and  appears  in 
the  light  of  a  guardian  angel,  or  benevolent  tutelary 
spirit,  eager  to  rise  as  we  rise,  and  steering  us  along 
the  course  of  moral  progress ;  while  the  karma,  on  the 
other  hand,  is  the  inflexible  judge,  caring  for  nothing 
but  the  law,  and  unable  to  forgive  misdeeds  which 
have  not  yet  been  atoned  for. 

In  the  belief  of  the  Magi,  the  soul  passes  through 
a  series  of  existences  until  it  attains  such  a  state  of 
purity  as  qualifies  it  for  release  from  further  re- 
incarnation and  renders  it  eligible  to  dwell  in  a  place 
of  light  eternal.  Meanwhile  it  has,  no  doubt,  lost 
all  memory  of  its  previous  lives ;  but  the  good  which 
it  has  done  and  the  lofty  aspirations  it  has  formed  are 
not  thrown  away,  having  been  gathered  up  by  its 
unconscious  kerdar;    and  when  at  the  last  it  has 


84  FUTURE  LIFE 

obtained  that  spiritual  enlightenment  which  is  the 
crown  of  human  progress,  the  soul  will  behold  its 
kerdar  in  full  consciousness,  and  recognise  therein  its 
work  and  recover  the  memory  of  its  former  existences. 

Let  us  add,  from  another  point  of  view,  that  this 
interesting  doctrine,  which  beholds  in  each  living 
creature  a  more  or  less  veiled  manifestation  of  divine 
consciousness,  a  pilgrim  more  or  less  advanced  upon 
the  high-road  of  unlimited  progress,  led  the  Chaldean 
Magi  onward  to  the  conception  of  the  universal  kin- 
ship of  all  living  beings,  which  is  highly  remarkable 
for  ancient  times.  They  included  therein  not  only  all 
their  own  countrymen,  regardless  of  rank,  but  all 
mankind.  Even  animals  come  within  the  bounds  of 
their  solicitude. 

He  that  makes  sacrifice,  says  Herodotus,  is  not 
allowed  to  offer  prayer  for  himself  alone,  but  must 
ask  that  benefits  may  be  showered  upon  all  those  of 
his  nation,  and  above  all  upon  the  king. 

"  To  thee,  O  Homa,  who  dost  make  the  poor  equal 
to  the  great,  to  thee  I  raise  my  prayer."  ^  In  another 
place  Zoroaster,  as  he  shows  the  heavenly  vault  to 
King  Gustap,  expresses  himself  thus :  "  These  rounded 
domes  cover,  without  distinction,  kings  and  their  sub- 
jects, masters  and  their  servants."  ^ 

It  is  the  Chaldeans'  duty  to  respect  useful  animals, 
which  emanate  from  Ormuzd,  and  to  combat  noxious 
beasts,  emanating  from  Ahriman,  and  he  is  to  re- 
member that  animals  have  a  soul  in  course  of  devel- 
opment, and  that  we  owe  duties  to  them.  The  rewards 
of  heaven  are  promised  to  such  as  have  care  for  the 

1  Menant. 

2  See  Anquetil  Duperron,  "Vie  de  Zoroastre* 


THE  CHALDEANS  85 

increase  of  domestic  animals  and  treat  them  with 
kindness  and  justice.  Moreover,  the  animals  them- 
selves will  some  day  be  able  to  recognise  the  benefits 
we  have  bestowed  upon  them : 

"  I  pray  to  the  animals,  that  they  in  their  turn  may 
pray  for  me.  To  slay  a  dog  that  is  set  to  watch  a  flock 
is  to  imperil  the  salvation  of  one's  soul." 

We  have  our  duties  to  perform  even  toward  plants. 
To  till  the  soil  and  clothe  the  earth  with  vegetable  life, 
to  beautify  it  and  make  it  happy  and  joyous,  is  as 
much  a  deed  of  sanctity  as  is  prayer.  The  feeling  of 
universal  kinship,  and  the  protection  which  they  were 
bound  to  extend  to  the  weak,  filled  the  Mazdseans  with 
a  deep  respect  for  women.  Monogamous  marriage 
was  compulsory  upon  all  the  faithful,  and  was  a  neces- 
sary condition  of  salvation.  This  institution  is  still 
upheld  by  the  Parsees  even  in  Mohammedan  coun- 
tries. Adultery  was  rigorously  put  down  by  religious 
law,  which  aimed  at  purity  of  life  and  manners.  As 
J.  Reynaud  remarks,  woman  preserved  her  personality 
even  in  marriage,  and  was  not  condemned  to  merge 
entirely  with  the  husband  and  to  follow  his  fortunes 
passively.  If .  she  was  worthy,  she  might  even  be 
admitted  to  priestly  office. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

THE   GAULS 

Immortality  the  Distinctive  Doctrine  of  the  Gaulish  Religion.  —  Rela- 
tions between  the  Celts  and  the  Greeks.  —  Resemblance  of  Druidic 
to  Pythagorean  Doctrine.  —  Druidic  Religion  and  Philosophy  now 
known  only  by  References  in  the  Classics  and  in  the  Songs  of  the 
Bards.  —  Ascent  of  the  Principle  of  Life  from  Plants,  through  Ani- 
mals and  Men,  up  to  God.  —  Plurality  of  Inhabited  Worlds.  —  The 
Moon  a  Preparatory  Region  for  Earth,  and  for  Heaven.  —  Immor- 
tality not  a  Theory,  but  a  Dogma.  —  Effect  of  this  Doctrine  on  the 
Lives  of  the  Gauls.  —  Their  Belief  in  Divine  Unity.  —  Resemblance 
of  their  Sacrificial  Rites  to  those  of  the  Hebrews.  —  Analogies 
between  Druidic  and  Chaldean  Religion.  — The  Mistletoe  a  Symbol 
of  Immortality.  —  Adoption  of  Christianity  by  the  Druids.  —  Ves- 
tiges of  Druidism  in  Early  Christianity.  —  Joan  of  Arc. 

IN  this  general  survey  of  the  races  of  antiquity 
the  Gauls  in  every  way  deserve  a  prominent 
place,  for  they,  more  than  any  other  people, 
had  a  firm  and  active  belief  in  the  doctrine  of  sur- 
vival and  immortality.  If  in  other  cases  we  have 
been  able  to  point  only  to  the  noble  dreams  and 
problematical  hopes  of  a  few  chosen  spirits  which 
were  perhaps  not  shared  by  the  masses  of  their 
fellow-countrymen,  in  the  case  of  the  Gauls  there  is 
general  imanimity,  one  absolute  and  unwavering 
faith,  which  became  the  foundation  of  all  their  insti- 
tutions and  the  undisputed  rule  of  life  for  every 
individual.  At  the  same  time,  this  faith  encouraged 
acts  of  devotion,  the  feeling  of  self-sacrifice  and  con- 
tempt for  death,  —  in  fine,  all  those  high  qualities 
which  won  for  the  great  Celtic  race  glory  and  fame 


THE  GAULS  87 

among  all  the  peoples  with  whom  it  came  in  contact 
during  its  protracted  wanderings.  As  Jean  Reynaud 
has  remarked,  in  his  fine  "  Esprit  de  la  Gaule  " : 

"  If  Judea  represents  in  the  world,  with  a  tenacity  of  its  own, 
the  idea  of  a  personal  and  absolute  God,  if  Greece  and  Rome 
represent  the  idea  of  society,  Gaul  represents,  just  as  particularly, 
the  idea  of  immortality.  Nothing  characterised  it  better,  as 
all  the  ancients  admit.  That  mysterious  folk  was  looked  upon 
as  the  privileged  possessor  of  the  secrets  of  death,  and  its  un- 
wavering instinctive  faith  in  the  persistence  of  life  never  ceased 
to  be  a  cause  of  astonishment,  and  sometimes  of  fear,  in  the  eyes 
of  the  heathen." 

All  ancient  writers  concur  in  setting  high  value 
upon  the  philosophy  of  the  Gauls,  of  which  they 
acknowledged  the  value  and  the  unquestioned  supe- 
riority. We  find  this  feeling  expressed  not  only 
among  heathen  writers  such  as  Aristotle,  Caesar, 
Lucan,  and  Valerius  Maximus ;  but  later  also  by  the 
Fathers  of  the  Church,  Saint  Cyril,  Saint  Clement, 
and  others. 

It  is  therefore  most  regrettable  that  so  highly 
esteemed  a  doctrine  should  have  become  lost  after 
the  conquest  of  Gaul,  and  that  we  should  have  only 
scattered  references  out  of  which  to  reconstruct  it. 
However,  there  is  no  need  for  doubt  upon  the  point 
which  concerns  us.  From  numerous  unequivocal 
quotations  we  know  that  the  relationship  of  the  Gauls 
to  the  school  of  Pythagoras  was  clearly  recognised. 

The  Celts,  who  doubtless  set  out  from  some  central 
Asiatic  home  at  the  time  of  the  great  Aryan  migra- 
tions, finally  settled  in  Gaul  after  having  passed 
through  the  greater  part  of  the  then  known  Continent. 
They  must  have  rubbed  shoulders  with  almost  all  the 


88  FUTURE  LIFE 

peoples  of  antiquity;  must  have  bartered  ideas  with 
them,  learned  from  them,  taught  them  perhaps;  and 
thus  it  is  that  we  have  numerous  records  of  their 
long-standing  relations  with  the  Greeks,  for  example. 
We  know  indeed  that  the  Gauls  regularly  despatched 
an  offering  to  the  great  sanctuaries  of  Greece,  and 
that  the  Celtic  god  Bel  had  a  place  set  apart  for  him 
in  the  temple  of  Delphi.  In  the  island  of  Delos  there 
stood  behind  the  temple  of  Artemis  a  Druidic  monu- 
ment, said  to  be  the  tomb  of  two  hyperborean  priest- 
esses who  had  come  to  the  island  in  the  olden  days 
together  with  Apollo.  In  the  very  temple  of  the  god 
there  was  another  such  monument,  and  both,  says 
Herodotus,  were  the  object  of  particular  veneration. 
When  speaking  of  the  ancient  alliance  between  the 
Dorian  and  Celtic  tribes  settled  at  his  time  upon 
the  Euxine,  Herodotus  mentions  the  name  of  a  cer- 
tain priest  Abaris,  whom  we  also  find  in  Pindar  and 
Hecatseus;  and  it  is  very  remarkable  that  a  Gaulish 
medal  of  gold  bearing  the  same  name  should  have 
been  discovered  in  western  France.  This  medal  is 
now  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale  at  Paris. 

Seeing  how  identical  are  their  doctrines,  it  is  not 
very  strange  that  antiquity  should  have  connected 
the  Druids  with  the  Pythagorean  school,  and  should 
have  supposed  Pythagoras  to  have  been  either  their 
master  or  their  pupil.  Polyhistor,  indeed,  declares 
in  his  book  upon  "  Symbols  "  that  Pythagoras  visited 
the  Brahmins  and  the  Celts.  Others  affirm  that  the 
Druids  were  initiated  by  Zamolais,  a  sometime  slave 
of  Pythagoras. 

As  we  have  already  remarked,  a  complete  knowl- 
edge of  Druidic  doctrine  is  unhappily  unattainable. 


THE  GAULS  89 

Their  teaching  was  entirely  oral  and  was  never  trans- 
mitted by  writing.  We  nevertheless  gather  from 
sundry  references,  far  too  rare,  in  Greek  and  Roman 
writers,  that  it  formed  a  philosophical  doctrine  of  high 
value;  its  study  entirely  absorbed  the  lives  of  those 
who  devoted  themselves  thereto,  and  the  mere  initia- 
tion period  lasted  no  less  than  thirty  years. 

The  information  gleaned  from  ancient  authors  is 
confirmed  by  the  songs  composed  after  the  Roman 
invasion  by  bards  who  had  been  instructed  by  the 
Druids.  These  songs  have  survived,  and  owing  to 
the  progress  of  Celtic  studies  they  can  now  be  inter- 
preted with  comparative  accuracy.  The  most  noted 
are  the  works  of  the  bard  Taliesin,  and  they  record 
nothing  more  than  the  faint  echo  of  a  dying  faith. 
They  permit,  however,  of  our  discerning  the  doctrine 
in  its  main  outline,  and,  thanks  to  them,  we  know 
the  Druids  to  have  admitted  the  existence  in  man 
of  an  immortal  and  immaterial  principle.  From  the 
interpretation  of  inscriptions  gathered  from  the 
menhirs,  and  especially  from  Gaulish  medals,  we 
gather  a  no  less  explicit  affirmation  of  a  faith  in 
immortality. 

The  Gauls  believed  that  man's  immaterial  part  was 
a  divine  emanation,  the  awen,  or  single  principle  of 
all  life.  Before  reaching  man,  the  unconscious  awen 
animated  inferior  forms  of  life,  first  plants  and  then 
animals.  It  was  then  imprisoned  in  the  circle  of  the 
abyss,  anufu,  but  after  long  years  of  struggle  and 
waiting  it  escaped  thence  and  entered  the  circle  of 
liberty,  ahred,  which  is  also  the  circle  of  transmigra- 
tions. This  circle  includes  all  the  worlds  of  trial 
and  atonement  peopled  by  mankind;    and  of  these 


90  FUTURE  LIFE 

worlds  the  earth  is  one.  After  many  transmigrations 
the  soul  will  pass  on,  and  will  attain  the  circle  of 
happy  worlds  and  felicity,  gwyniid.  But  even  this  is 
not  all.  Far  higher  and  inaccessibly  removed  is  the 
circle  of  the  infinite,  ceugant,  encompassing  the  other 
circles  and  belonging  to  God  alone. 

One  feels  no  hesitation  in  recognising  the  doctrine 
of  transmigration,  which  we  have  already  remarked 
among  the  great  races  of  antiquity,  and  which  formed 
the  basis  of  the  Pythagorean  teachings.  As  it  at  the 
same  time  rests  upon  the  notion  of  an  infinite  progress 
toward  perfection,  it  would  seem  to  deny  explicitly 
the  possibility  of  the  soul's  returning  to  inferior 
forms,  as  was  generally  held  to  be  the  case  in  the 
theory  of  metempsychosis.  The  Gaulish  doctrine 
recognises  the  essential  difference  between  the  soul 
of  man  and  the  soul  of  the  animal,  and  is  thus  in 
advance  of  other  doctrines. 

So  deeply  were  the  Gauls  impressed  by  thoughts 
of  a  future  life  that,  it  is  said,  they  waited  five  years 
after  condemning  a  criminal  before  they  put  him  to 
death,  so  as  to  give  him  time  for  repentance,  and 
fearing  also  to  sully  the  world  beyond  with  the  pres- 
ence of  guilty  souls. 

The  continuous  transmigration  of  souls  as  yet  de- 
tained in  the  circle  of  abred  took  place  not  only  upon 
earth,  but  also  in  kindred  planetary  worlds.  Thus 
says  Lucan  in  his  "  Pharsalia,"  addressing  the  Gauls : 

"Ye  deem  that  the  shades  are  not  interred  in  Erebus'  dark 
realm,  but  that  the  soul  returns  to  people  other  bodies  in  new 
worlds.  The  same  soul  rules  other  limbs  in  other  worlds.  If 
that  which  your  hymns  sing  is  truth,  death  is  but  an  interlude 
in  a  long  life." 


THE  GAULS  91 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  Druids,  who  had 
attained  to  this  conception  of  the  plurality  of  inhabited 
worlds,  must  have  possessed  profound  astronomical 
knowledge,  as  indeed  Caesar  claims  for  them.  They 
almost  certainly  knew  that  the  world  moves  in  the 
universe,  of  which  it  does  not  occupy  the  centre. 

But  listen  to  the  bard  Taliesin: 

"  I  will  ask  of  the  bards  what  upholdeth  the  earth,  seeing  that 
it  is  without  maintenance,  yet  falleth  not.     Who  can  uphold  it  ? 

"  A  great  journeyer  is  the  world.  While  it  glides  on  unrest- 
ing, it  remains  calm  in  its  path.  How  wonderful  is  that  path, 
that  the  world  should  never  at  all  leave  it !  " 

Hecatasus  informs  us  that  the  Druids  taught  the 
existence  of  lunar  mountains,  which  would  indeed 
point  to  their  possessing  very  exact  knowledge  con- 
cerning our  satellite.  The  Druids,  like  the  Chaldean 
Magi,  and  indeed  most  priests  of  antiquity,  were 
astronomers,  —  the  watching  of  the  skies  was  their 
principal  business.  According  to  their  belief,  souls 
which  finally  escaped  from  their  humanity  passed 
beyond  the  atmosphere  and  betook  themselves  to  the 
moon,  which  constituted  a  sort  of  half-way  paradise. 
Here  they  again  suffered  death,  finally  issuing  forth, 
transfigured  and  entirely  purged,  to  go  to  the  sun, 
the  real  and  lasting  paradise.  Plutarch  tells  us  that 
they  looked  upon  the  moon  as  the  place,  and  there- 
fore the  visible  pledge,  of  the  immortality  awaiting 
them.  It  is  moreover  known  that  the  moon  played 
a  predominant  part  in  ancient  esoterism;  according 
to  the  Pythagoreans  it  formed  a  sojourning  place 
between  earth  and  heaven.  The  souls  of  the  dead 
passed  their  astral  life  upon  the  face  turned  toward 
the   earth   before   they   were   permitted   to   rise   to 


92  FUTURE  LIFE 

heaven,  while  the  souls  of  heroes  and  geniuses  about 
to  become  incarnate  assumed  the  astral  body  upon 
the  averted  face  before  descending  to  the  earth.  The 
moon  magnetised  the  souls  for  terrestrial  incarnation 
and  demagnetised  them  for  heaven.  It  consequently 
enjoyed,  as  Jean  Reynaud  tells  us,  every  kind  of 
religious  favour.  The  order  of  the  ceremonies,  which 
the  moon  sanctified  by  her  presence  and  rays,  was 
fixed  according  to  her  phases;  her  crescent,  placed 
in  the  Druids'  hands,  served  as  the  sign  and  emblem 
of  their  office.  To  summarise  Druidical  doctrine 
from  the  eschatological  standpoint,  it  may  be  said 
that  the  earth  was  regarded  as  an  inferior  world, 
wherein  liberty  enjoyed  free  play,  which  fact  ex- 
plained the  existence  of  evil.  But  it  was  only  a 
transient  abode,  for  afterwards  the  soul  entered  into 
heaven,  which  was  the  world  of  love  par  excellence. 
This  goal  it  could  attain  only  after  numerous  trans- 
migrations ;  and  upon  this  point  Plutarch  informs  us 
that  the  death  of  a  higher  man  who  is  about  to  enter 
the  final  gwynild  circle  causes  certain  disturbances 
in  the  earthly  material  world.  In  principle,  the  soul 
is  detained  in  the  circle  of  abred  after  death,  for 
the  three  following  shortcomings,  —  neglect  of  self- 
instruction,  lack  of  love  of  good,  and  attachment  to 
evil.  When  at  last  it  does  reach  the  circle  of  gwynfid, 
its  awen  recovers  pristine  purity  together  with  the 
recollection  of  its  past  existences,  and  enjoys  more- 
over the  afTection  of  those  whom  it  had  known  and 
loved  during  its  many  pilgrimages  upon  earth. 

What,  however,  especially  characterises  the  Gauls 
and  their  doctrine  of  immortality  is  that  they  did 
not  regard  it  as  a  mere  philosophical  theory  subject 


THE   GAULS  93 

to  discussion,  but  as  an  absolute  certainty  possessing 
all  the  reality  of  the  present  life.  Upon  this  point 
all  ancient  authorities  are  unanimous :  that  the 
certainty  of  immortality  governed  their  every  act, 
inspired  them  with  such  noble  virtues  as  are  engen- 
dered by  contempt  for  death,  and  with  that  bravery 
exaggerated  into  foolhardiness  which  proved  their 
destruction.  According  to  Pomponius  Mela  and 
Valerius  Maximus,  they  did  not  hesitate  to  lend  sums 
repayable  in  the  next  world.  They  buried  or  burned 
with  the  dead  such  of  their  belongings  as  might 
serve  them  in  their  next  existence;  and  Diodorus 
Siculus  says  that  they  even  added  thereto  letters  ad- 
dressed to  relations  who  had  died  at  some  earlier 
time,  so  that  they  might  be  delivered  to  them  by 
the  deceased. 

Druidical  doctrine,  moreover,  possesses  this  re- 
markable feature:  faith  in  immortality  went  hand 
in  hand  with  a  most  exact  belief  in  Divine  unity. 
The  god  ^sus,  whose  name  is  remarkably  similar 
to  the  Greek  Aisa,  or  goddess  of  destiny,  superior 
even  to  Zeus  himself,  was  considered  the  supreme 
head  of  the  universe,  placed  above  all  other  divini- 
ties. It  is  known  that  Aristotle  thought  that  the 
name  Aisa  might  be  explained  by  a  quaint  etymol- 
ogy, namely,  ael  ovaav,  ever  existing,  which  strik- 
ingly recalls  the  name  of  the  God  of  the  Jews, 
Jehovah,  which  is  formed  by  the  combination  of 
the  three  tenses  of  the  verb  to  he,  past,  present,  and 
future,  and  likewise  expresses  the  notion  of  eternity. 
Interesting,  too,  is  the  fact  that  the  Druidic  ritual 
presented  singular  analogies  with  that  observed  by 
the  Israelites  at  the  time  of  Exodus  and  Judges. 


94  FUTURE  LIFE 

Like  them,  they  adored  the  Highest  amid  the  great 
forest  oaks,  beneath  the  starry  vault,  and  in  no 
temple  built  by  man.  The  stone  upon  which  they 
laid  their  offerings  was  intentionally  left  unhewn; 
for  if  it  had  been  touched  by  any  tool  it  would  have 
been  tainted  with  man's  impurity,  and  that  which  has 
come  straight  from  the  Creator's  hand  is  pure  enough 
to  be  set  before  his  face. 

The  unhewn  rock,  or  menhir,  which  no  doubt  shel- 
tered the  sacrifice,  was  reared  amidst  the  towering 
oak-boles,  which  thus  formed,  as  it  were,  the  pillars 
of  nature's  temple.  Like  features  mark  the  sacri- 
fices offered  by  the  Hebrew  patriarchs  and  described 
in  the  Bible.  So  did  Abraham  come  afoot  into  the 
oak-forest  to  lay  his  offering  before  Jehovah,  and 
he  set  it  down  upon  a  rough  stone  consecrated  for 
the  purpose  and  called  Bethel,  the  House  of  God. 
The  Israelites  also  raised  mighty  stones  to  com- 
memorate events  in  w^hich  they  desired  to  trace  the 
ever-watchful  guardianship  of  Jehovah;  or  else  they 
reared  tumuli  upon  which  each  man  laid  his  stone, 
as  was  done  after  the  passing  of  Jordan.  Herein 
we  have  a  definite  parallel  with  the  Gaulish  crom- 
lechs. It  need  hardly  be  added  that  with  the  Gauls, 
even  as  with  the  Israelites,  the  idea  of  worshipping 
God  necessarily  involved  the  notion  of  sacrifice,  and 
unhappily  it  led  both  peoples  to  the  too  frequent 
practice  of  bloody  holocausts. 

It  may  be  well  understood  that  all  these  analogies 
bet^yeen  Jewish  and  Druidic  ceremonial  long  ago 
impressed  commentators,  and  appeared  to  them  to 
indicate  the  existence,  at  some  time  in  the  begin- 
ning of  history,  of  active  relations  between  the  two 


THE  GAULS  95 

peoples.  From  other  points  of  view  no  less  pre- 
cise analogies  can  be  remarked  between  Druidic  and 
Chaldean  religion.  Pliny,  indeed,  calls  the  Druids 
the  Magi  of  Gaul. 

Mistletoe,  for  instance,  was  an  indispensable  feature 
in  all  Gaulish  religious  ceremonies,  of  which  indeed 
the  word  "  druid "  is  itself  immediate  proof,  for 
it  is  in  all  probability  derived  from  the  two  vocables 
derv  (oak)  and  wydd  (mistletoe),  derwydd  being 
the  original  Celtic  for  Druid.  There  is  every  reason 
to  suppose,  as  Jean  Reynaud  says,  that  the  Druidic 
mistletoe  fulfilled  the  same  symbolic  uses  as  did  the 
Mazdsean  homa  or  the  Vedic  soma  among  the  Magi 
and  Aryans,  respectively. 

Fitting  symbol,  indeed,  of  immortality  was  the 
evergreen  mistletoe,  sprouting  from  a  strange  tree, 
and  which,  as  it  perishes  by  its  fermentation,  gives 
birth  to  hidden  forces  from  which  a  new  being  will 
arise.  We  might  multiply  examples,  but  those  we 
have  already  given  suffice  to  emphasize  the  numerous 
analogies  by  which  the  Druidic  doctrines  were  linked 
with  the  great  religions  of  antiquity. 

Dr.  Maurice  Adam  remarks  that  these  same  analo- 
gies later  reappeared  in  the  Christian  dogma;  and  it 
is  not  difficult  to  understand  that  the  Druids  should 
have  readily  adhered  to,  and  propagated,  the  new 
religion  as  soon  as  it  was  conveyed  to  them  by  the 
Roman  invasion.  In  it  they  recognised  their  funda- 
mental dogmas  allied  with  a  higher  doctrine  of  divine 
love  and  of  charity  toward  every  creature,  which  they 
had  not  so  far  known,  but  the  call  whereof  they  were 
worthy  to  hear. 

The   menhirs    and    dolmens    received    the   cross. 


96  FUTURE  LIFE 

"  Good  is  the  stone  with  the  Gospel,'*  proclaimed 
the  bards,  and  La  Villemarque  says  that  St.  Patrick 
carried  a  stone  with  him  upon  his  travels,  to  serve 
as  an  altar  for  celebrating  the  mass. 

A.  Bertrand  even  asserts  that  the  monasteries 
wherewith  Gaul  was  covered  were  merely  ancient 
Druidic  congregations  which  had  been  converted 
wholesale.  Jubainville  also  declares  that  in  Ireland 
the  Druidic  hierarchy  became  at  once  converted  into 
a  Christian  hierarchy.  It  is  clear  why  the  Chris- 
tian dogma  sank  into  the  soul  of  the  descendants 
of  the  Gauls  so  profoundly  that  for  long  centuries 
their  history  is  confounded  with  that  of  the  Church. 

It  is  very  remarkable  that  the  worship  of  trees  and 
forest-fairies  should  have  persisted  in  Gaul  after  the 
rise  of  Christianity;  and  this  shows  that  in  the 
opinion  of  our  forefathers  a  Christian  belief  did  not 
exclude  the  last  vestiges  of  the  older  faith.  This 
influence,  indeed,  has  left  a  deep  mark  upon  all  the 
intellectual  output  of  the  Middle  Ages;  it  inspires 
the  Bardic,  or  neo-Druid  poetry;  and  in  the  epic  of 
the  Round  Table,  in  the  songs  of  the  Trouveres, 
and  in  the  old  Fabliaux,  it  is  always  the  Celtic  spirit 
which  influences  the  choice  of  subjects  and  heroes. 
The  same  Druidic  faith,  although  she  knew  it  not, 
inspired  the  earliest  thoughts  of  the  Maid  whom  the 
famous  prophecy  of  Merlin  summoned  to  be  the  lib- 
erator of  France  in  one  of  the  most  troublous  periods 
of  its  history.  We  know  that  the  poor  Domremy 
shepherdess  was  wont  to  go  and  think  beneath  the 
shade  of  the  giant  oaks,  and  there  drank  in  the  in- 
spiration which  had  guided  the  Gallic  race;  there 
she  saw  angelic  visions,  and  thence  drew  courage 


THE  GAULS  97 

to  face  battle  and  bloodshed,  and  lastly  to  sacrifice 
her  life  to  save  France.  She  upon  whom  we  look 
as  the  hallowed  incarnation  of  mother  country  united 
in  herself  the  two  great  streams  of  influence  which 
had  contributed  to  its  upgrowth,  —  Gaulish  tradition 
and  Christian  faith. 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE   JEWS 

Immortality  obscurely  taught  in  the  Old  Testament.  —  Quotations  on 
this  Subject  from  the  Book  of  Wisdom,  Ezekiel,  Job,  Daniel, 
Maccabees.  —  Why  Job  and  Maccabees  cannot  be  viewed  as  prov- 
ing that  the  Jews  believed  in  Immortality.  —  Moses  probably  a 
Believer  in  the  Doctrine.  —  A  Wide-spread  Belief  that  the  Penta- 
teuch holds  a  Hidden  Meaning.  —  Three  Different  Words  used  in 
the  Bible  to  signify  the  Immaterial  Part  of  Man.  —  Evidence  that 
the  Old  Testament  admits  a  Belief  in  Survival,  and  in  the  Power 
of  the  Dead  to  manifest  themselves.  —  Probability  that  the  Israel- 
ites practised  Ancestor-worship.  —  Their  Laws  for  providing  Heirs 
for  Men  who  had  no  Sons.  —  Their  Hopes  for  the  Dead.  —  Sheol 
compared  to  Purgatory.  —  Survival  plainly  taught  in  the  Cabala 
and  the  Zohar.  —  Rotation  of  the  Earth  taught  in  the  Zohar.— 
Reincarnation  taught  in  the  Time  of  Christ. 

THE  Jewish  Bible  appears  at  the  first  glance 
to  know  nothing  of  immortality.  It  merely 
states  that  the  present  life  will  reward  the 
righteous  and  chastise  the  wicked.  In  order  to  im- 
press the  chosen  people  with  a  sense  of  their  duties 
toward  Jehovah,  it  never  so  much  as  thinks  of  ap- 
pealing to  the  idea  of  an  after-life.  The  Pentateuch 
mentions  only  Sheol,  a  kind  of  dark  cavern  where  the 
souls  of  the  dead  are  gathered  together  in  an  uncon- 
scious sleep.  All  apologists  of  the  Bible  have  long 
been  struck  with  this  conception;  Bossuet  declares 
that  God  no  doubt  considered  that  the  intelligence 
of  the  early  Hebrews  was  insufficiently  developed  to 
grasp  the  conception  of  immortality.  It  may,  however, 
be  noted  that  the  absence  of  the  idea  of  survival  is 


THE  JEWS  99 

not  so  complete  as  might  at  first  sight  appear,  and 
it  is  possible  to  adduce  numerous  passages  affirming 
such  an  idea  more  or  less  explicitly. 

Solomon's  ''  Book  of  Wisdom  "  tells  us  that  God 
made  man  imperishable,  and  that  by  sin  alone  death 
entered  into  the  world.  "  They  knew  not  the  secrets 
of  God,  nor  hoped  for  the  wages  of  justice,  nor  es- 
teemed the  honour  of  holy  souls.  For  God  created 
man  incorruptible,  and  to  the  image  of  His  own  like- 
ness He  made  him."  ^ 

Well  known  is  the  vision  of  Ezekiel  in  which  the 
prophet,  in  obedience  to  a  divine  command,  bids  the 
dry  bones  of  the  dead  to  awaken  and  live  again.^ 

We  may  also  quote  various  passages  from  the  Book 
of  Job :  "  For  I  know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth,  and 
in  the  last  day  I  shall  rise  out  of  the  earth,  and  I  shall 
be  clothed  again  with  my  skin,  and  in  my  flesh  shall 
I  see  my  God :  whom  I  myself  shall  see  and  my  eyes 
shall  behold,  and  not  another:  this  my  hope  is  laid 
up  in  my  bosom."  ^ 

Job  maintains,  as  a  general  rule,  that  crime  is  often 
unpunished  in  this  world,  because  God  reserves  His 
punishment  for  another  life. 

Finally,  there  is  the  following  passage  in  the  Book 
of  Daniel :  "  And  many  of  those  that  sleep  in  the  dust 
of  the  earth  shall  awake,  some  unto  life  everlasting, 
and  others  unto  reproach,  to  see  it  always."  ^  Most 
characteristic  of  all  are  the  following  verses  from  the 
Second  Book  of  Maccabees :  "  She  said  to  them : 
I  know  not  how  you  were  formed  in  my  womb ;  for 
I  neither  gave  you  breath,  nor  soul,  nor  life ;  neither 

1  Wisdom  ii.  22,"23.  ^  Ezekiel  xxxvii.  3-7. 

8  Job  xix.  25-27. '  *  Daniel  xii.  2. 


100  FUTURE  LIFE 

did  I  frame  the  limbs  of  every  one  of  you,  but  the 
Creator  of  the  world.  .  .  .  He  will  restore  to  you 
again  in  his  mercy  both  breath  and  life.  .  .  .  For  my 
brethren,  having  now  undergone  a  short  pain,  are 
under  the  covenant  of  eternal  life."  ^  ^'  And  making 
a  gathering,  he  sent  twelve  thousand  drachms  of  sil- 
ver to  Jerusalem  for  sacrifice  to  be  offered  for  the 
sins  of  the  dead,  thinking  well  and  religiously  concern- 
ing the  resurrection  (for  if  he  had  not  hoped  that 
they  that  were  slain  should  rise  again,  it  would  have 
seemed  superfluous  and  vain  to  pray  for  the  dead). 
...  It  is  therefore  a  holy  and  wholesome  thought  to 
pray  for  the  dead,  that  they  may  be  loosed  from  sins."  ^ 
It  is  at  once  clear  that  in  these  last  three  quotations 
especially  we  have  a  most  explicit  affirmation;  but 
it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  Books  of  Maccabees, 
due  apparently  to  two  different  authors,  date  from 
much  more  recent  times  than  the  rest  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament writings.  They  recount  the  history  of  the 
fifty  years  preceding  the  death  of  Alexander  the  Great, 
which  took  place  in  312  b.c.  Consequently  they  can 
have  been  compiled  only  in  the  second  century  b.c, 
and  they  do  not  form  part  of  the  Jewish  Canon, 
which  had  by  that  time  already  been  fixed.  It  is  there- 
fore possible  to  suppose  that  the  idea  of  immortality 
had  been  imported  into  Judea  by  the  surrounding 
nations  during  the  numerous  invasions  of  which  the 
country  was  the  scene,  and  that  it  had  been  accepted 
by  a  part,  if  not  the  whole,  of  the  Israelites,  as  being 
in  conformity,  or  at  the  least  compatible,  with  the  law 
of  Moses.  Moreover,  the  explanatory  matter  put  for- 
ward by  the  author  of  the  Second  Book  of  Maccabees 
1  2  Maccabees  vii.  22.  23,  36.  2  Ibid.  xii.  43,  44,  46. 


THE  JEW^\  ^\,i  101 

looks  very  much  as  if  he  desired  to  justify  a  belief 
which  was  doubtless  not  yet  universally  admitted. 
A  kindred  objection  might  perhaps  be  brought  against 
the  Book  of  Job,  although  it  is  undoubtedly  much 
older,  some  authors  ascribing  it  even  to  the  times  of 
Moses.  We  have,  however,  no  precise  information 
as  to  its  date  or  as  to  the  nationality  of  its  author. 
Maccabees  and  Job  cannot,  therefore,  be  viewed  as 
decisively  proving  that  the  Jews  believed  in  immor- 
tality, and  it  would  be  much  more  instructive  if  we 
looked  to  the  Pentateuch  itself  for  any  trace  of  the 
possible  views  held  upon  the  subject  by  Moses.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  that  having  been  brought  up  in  the 
holy  places  of  Egypt  he  must  have  shared  in  the 
beliefs  to  which  he  had  been  initiated  by  the  Egyptian 
priests.  But  he  no  doubt  thought  that  it  would  be 
impossible  to  reveal  those  teachings  with  beneficial 
results  to  the  half-civilised  people  whose  prophet  and 
legislator  he  became.  Perhaps  in  obedience  to  the 
examples  of  his  masters,  or  in  reverence  of  his  prom- 
ise as  an  initiate,  perhaps,  as  thought  Bossuet,  in  obe- 
dience to  the  guiding  inspiration  of  God,  he  refrained 
from  openly  stating  any  fundamental  truths,  but 
wrapped  them  in  the  veil  of  mystery  which  we  still 
have  such  difficulty  in  penetrating. 

All  commentators  are  agreed  in  believing  the  Pen- 
tateuch to  enfold  a  hidden  meaning.  Such  was  the 
notion  of  the  Jewish  rabbins,  such  was  the  opinion  of 
the  Fathers  of  the  Church,  St.  Paul,  Origen,  and  St. 
Augustine;  and  it  is  all  the  more  credible  inasmuch 
as  the  priests  of  Egypt  habitually  wrote  with  a  hidden 
meaning  and  were  never  willing  entirely  to  disclose 
the  truths  taught  in  their  sanctuaries.     These  were 


103     . ,.   .  ■     ...      FUTURE  LIFE 

revealed  to  none  but  the  chosen  few,  after  a  long 
course  of  initiatory  study  extending  over  years.  They 
reappear  in  the  mysteries  of  all  the  nations  of  anti- 
quity, which  are  only  a  distant  echo  of  the  Egyptian 
mysteries. 

Besides  the  apparent  sense,  which  is  in  itself  often 
exceedingly  doubtful,  we  have  in  any  sacred  book  to 
look  for  an  esoteric  meaning  containing  the  real  idea 
of  the  author.  Many  attempts  of  this  kind  have  been 
made  in  the  case  of  the  Bible,  especially  the  Penta- 
teuch, and  have  resulted  in  extremely  divergent  con- 
clusions, with  which  we  need  not  here  deal.  We  shall, 
however,  draw  attention  to  the  debate  which  has  arisen 
as  to  how  to  interpret  certain  verses  alluding  to  the 
constitution  of  the  spiritual  element  in  man. 

In  the  two  most  characteristic  passages  the 
Bible  simultaneously  employs  the  three  expressions: 
nichema,  rouah,  nephesh,  which  may  be  roughly  trans- 
lated as  "  soul "  or  "  spirit,"  but  the  exact  sense  of 
which  should  be  found  out  with  a  view  to  discovering 
whether  each  name  is  not  applied  to  some  distinct  por- 
tion of  the  spiritual  element.  If  this  were  the  case, 
we  should  be  again  in  presence  of  the  Egyptian  con- 
ception, according  to  which  the  soul  forms  a  complex 
whole  and  not  an  immaterial,  indivisible  unit,  which 
tradition  generally  admits  in  the  Christian  dogma. 

The  first  of  these  passages  is  from  Genesis,  and 
describes  the  creation  of  man.^  Hebrew  scholars  that 
wish  to  accentuate  the  distinction  of  three  constitu- 
ent elements  translate  as  follows :  "  The  Lord  God 
joined  to  his  material  organs  (that  is,  of  man)  the 
intelligent  soul  (the  ego),  nichema,  bearing  the  breath 

1  Gen.  ii.  7. 


THE  JEWS  103 

of  life;  rouah  (which  follows  it  in  all  lives)  ;  and 
the  bond  of  this  union  of  the  soul  with  the  gross  body 
was  a  breath  of  life,  nephesh." 

The  Vulgate  runs  as  follows,  and  entirely  ignores 
any  such  distinction :  "  And  the  Lord  God  formed 
man  of  the  slime  of  the  earth,  and  breathed  into  his 
face  the  breath  of  life,  and  man  became  a  living 
soul." 

In  Job  the  same  three  expressions  again  occur  si- 
multaneously, and  the  interpretations  given  to  this 
passage  differ  as  before.  The  distinction-theory  rests 
upon  the  following  rendering :  "  And  God  has  post- 
poned the  punishment  of  the  guilty,  afflicting  him  first 
in  his  earthly  spirit,  nephesh,  because  the  soul, 
nichema,  is  joined  in  me  eternally  with  the  divine 
spirit,  rouah.'' 

The  Vulgate  runs  as  follows:  "As  God  liveth,  who 
hath  taken  away  my  judgment,  and  the  Almighty, 
who  hath  brought  my  soul  to  bitterness,  as  long  as 
breath  remaineth  in  me  and  the  spirit  of  God  in  my 
nostrils,  .  .  .  "  ^ 

The  Latin  text  of  the  Vulgate  is : 

"  Vivit  Deus  qui  abstulit  judicium  meum,  et  omnipotens  qui  ad 
amaritudinem  adduxit  animam  meam, 

"  Quia  donee  superest  habitus  in  me  et  spiritus  Dei  in  naribus 
meis,  ..." 

We  might  also  adduce  the  passage  in  Isaiah  where 
the  three  expressions  again  occur  side  by  side.  The 
Vulgate  translates  as  follows :  "  For  I  will  not  con- 
tend for  ever,  neither  will  I  be  angry  unto  the  end; 
because  the  spirit  shall  go  forth  from  my  face,  and 
breathings  I  will  make " ;  ^  against  which  we  have 

1  Job  xxvii.  2,  3.  2  isa.  Ivii.  16. 


104  FUTURE  LIFE 

this  translation :  "  The  soul  shall  go  out  of  my  hands, 
and  I  will  give  it  a  nephesh  which  will  join  it  to  the 
body  for  its  incarnation." 

These  divergences  should  not  cause  great  surprise 
when  one  remembers  to  what  unceasing  discussion  the 
Bible  has  been  subjected,  and  the  countless  attempts 
which  have  been  made  to  interpret  it  in  the  most  dif- 
ferent manners.  All  of  which  has  only  contributed 
to  show  the  difficulty  attending  any  translation  of 
expressions  the  sense  of  which  has  doubtless  con- 
stantly varied  since  the  remote  epoch  when  the  book 
itself  was  composed. 

We  shall  not  here  attempt  to  solve  the  dispute,  but 
shall  merely  note  the  fact  that  the  Bible  considers  the 
soul  as  containing  an  emanation  of  the  divine  spirit, 
and  as  therefore  destined  to  participate  in  the  immor- 
tality of  the  Creator.  We  may  therefore  conclude 
that  the  Bible  admits,  at  least  by  implication,  a  belief 
in  survival,  and  also  in  the  capability  of  the  souls  of 
the  dead  to  manifest  themselves.  It  is  hardly  neces- 
sary to  recall  the  famous  passage  in  which  the  shade 
of  the  prophet  Samuel  is  conjured  up  by  the  witch  of 
Endor  at  the  request  of  Saul.  The  soul  survives  in  a 
kind  of  semi-conscious  condition,  surrounded  by  the 
fluid-like  envelope,  or  nephesh,  by  means  of  which  it 
can  manifest  itself  when  called  upon.  This  envelope 
at  the  same  time  establishes  a  kind  of  permanent  con- 
nection between  the  physical  body  and  the  soul  which 
has  vacated  it ;  for  the  soul  continues  to  suffer  so  long 
as  the  body  is  not  brought  back  to  the  land  of  Judah, 
there  to  sleep  its  last  sleep.  It  would  seem  that  the 
disembodied  entity  still  feels  some  of  the  wants  of 
physical  life  even  after  death  —  the  same  belief  with 


THE  JEWS  105 

which  we  have  already  met  so  often  among  ancient 
races,  and  which  still  subsists  among  Oriental  peoples. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  this  crude  conception 
of  survival  must  have  led  the  first  Israelites  to  prac- 
tise ancestor-worship,  for  we  find  them  paying  ex- 
treme care  to  consecrated  burial,  to  the  end  that  the 
soul  might  enjoy  repose  in  the  life  beyond;  we  see 
them  equally  concerned  about  leaving  a  son  behind 
them  for  the  continuance  of  sacrifices;  and  we  dis- 
cover in  the  Bible  various  passages  giving  clear  evi- 
dence of  that  organisation  according  to  family  which 
is  the  mark  of  races  devoted  to  ancestor-worship. 

Thus  Sarah,  when  she  remained  barren,  herself 
suggested  to  Abraham  that  he  should  seek  to  obtain 
a  child  by  her  servant  Hagar,  whom  he  was  to  take 
as  a  kind  of  wife  of  the  second  class,  like  the  Chinese 
tsi-e;  and  we  also  know  that  the  Mosaic  law  pre- 
scribed, like  the  laws  of  Manu,  that  a  man  must  marry 
the  wife  of  his  brother  deceased  without  issue,  and 
that  her  son  should  be  held  to  be  the  son  of  the  dead 
man ;   for  his  line  must  not  be  extinguished. 

This  was  the  idea  that  caused  Boaz  to  marry 
Ruth  the  Moabitess,  the  widow  of  Mahlon,  whose 
nearest  relative  he  was ;  for  he  desired  that  the  name 
of  Mahlon  should  not  become  extinct  among  his 
brethren  and  people;  and  it  was  the  same  idea  that 
led  Tamar  to  commit  incest  with  her  father-in-law 
Judah,  when  she  had  been  rejected  by  her  brother- 
in-law  Onan,  who  had  become  her  husband  after  the 
death  of  Er,  her  former  spouse;  for  Onan  refused 
to  give  posterity  to  a  brother  whom  he  had  hated 
during  his  life. 

It  is  true  that  the  Bible  offers  no  explanation  of 


106  FUTURE  LIFE 

these  customs.  But  they  seem  to  afford  good  evi- 
dence of  the  persistence  of  an  organisation  by  families, 
based  upon  primitive  ancestor-worship.  No  doubt 
the  Jews  were  unacquainted  with  conscious  immor- 
tahty  as  taught  later  by  Christianity,  nevertheless  we 
may  note  that  they  sometimes  admitted  a  belief  in 
individual  bliss  in  the  after-life,  in  the  case  at  least  of 
certain  exceptional  souls.  Schutz  says,  in  his  learned 
dissertation  on  Moses,  quoted  by  Pezzani,  that,  after 
death,  the  soul,  faithful  to  the  inspiration  of  the  divine 
spirit  and  clothed  in  a  radiant  body,  the  ethereal 
nephesh,  rejoins  its  forefathers,  the  people  of  God. 

It  is  to  the  bosom  of  Abraham,  the  common  father 
of  all  believers,  that  the  souls  of  those  who  have  died 
far  from  their  native  land  fly  from  all  corners  of  the 
earth,  —  the  souls  of  Sarah,  of  Jacob,  of  Aaron,  and 
of  Moses  himself.  At  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles,  the 
Israelites  make  this  prayer  to  God : 

"  May  his  soul  be  bound  up  in  the  sheaves  of  life, 
with  the  souls  of  Abraham,  Sarah,  Rebecca,  Rachel, 
Leah,  and  of  such  other  righteous  men  and  women  as 
are  in  Paradise."  The  virtuous  soul  finds  its  reward 
in  the  quickening  of  its  love  and  of  its  intelligence, 
applied  to  the  understanding  of  the  divine  laws  and 
wishes.  This  heavenly  existence  may  begin  upon 
earth  and  does  not  entail  passing  the  gates  of  death, 
as  we  see  in  the  cases  of  Enoch  and  Elijah.  As  for 
the  soul  which  has  strayed  from  God,  it  is  sent  to  a 
lower  Sheol,  the  etymological  meaning  of  which  is  the 
place  of  prayer,  so  that  consequently  there  may  be  an 
implied  idea  of  a  purgatorial  existence  leading  pos- 
sibly to  expiation.  We  know  that  sheol  was  the  dwell- 
ing place  of  the  rephrdinij  which  we  translate  manes: 


THE  JEWS  107 

but  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  word  means  "  the  weak 
who  are  to  be  cured  " ;  it  would  thus  go  to  confirm 
the  notion  of  a  purgatory,  and  perhaps  the  theory  of 
reincarnation,  with  which  the  Jews  were  certainly 
acquainted,  for  we  find  it  expounded  in  the  books 
annexed  to  the  Bible. 

If  the  idea  of  survival  is,  in  the  Bible  proper,  hidden 
under  a  more  or  less  thick  veil,  it  stands  out  with  abso- 
lute clearness  from  the  Cabala  and  the  Zohar,  which 
summarise  the  doctrine  taught  to  those  initiated  into 
the  Mysteries.  For  it  appears  to  be  an  established  fact 
that  the  Israelites  had  their  Mysteries,  just  as  much  as 
the  Egyptians  and  the  majority  of  ancient  races.  The 
subjects  handled  in  these  symbolic  ceremonies  were 
the  same  in  all  countries,  for  they  attempted  to  answer 
that  obstinate  questioning  which  is  common  to  all  men 
under  every  clime.  The  results  attained  were  doubt- 
less very  much  the  same  in  every  case. 

The  masters  of  the  Mysteries  expounded  the  hidden 
meaning  of  the  holy  book,  and  revealed,  but  only  to 
their  most  approved  disciples,  the  solution  which  they 
themselves  had  received  of  the  mystery  of  life  and  its 
sequel.  An  examination  of  the  works  which  may 
have  caught  some  faint  echoes  of  that  mysterious  doc- 
trine is  of  peculiar  interest. 

True  it  is  that  both  the  Cabala  and  the  Zohar  were 
compiled  long  after  the  Babylonish  captivity,  and  that 
they  are  consequently  tinctured  with  the  ideas  of  the 
surrounding  peoples,  but  it  must  be  allowed  on  the 
other  hand  that  they  would  have  lost  all  authority  if 
they  had  mutilated  the  traditional  faith  as  handed 
down  in  the  Mysteries. 


108  FUTURE  LIFE 

The  Zohar,  which  was  compiled  about  a.  d.  121  by 
Simon  ben  Jochai  and  his  disciples  according  to  for- 
mer purely  oral  traditions,  treats  of  the  rotation  of 
the  earth,  long  before  Galileo.  Such  a  notion  ap- 
peared at  the  time  highly  absurd  and  quite  contra- 
dictory to  the  teaching  of  the  Bible.  Consequently, 
the  early  Christians,  following  the  lead  of  Lactantius, 
combated  the  idea  with  might  and  main.  As  far  as 
the  constitution  of  the  soul  is  concerned,  it  is  very 
noteworthy  that  the  Zohar  plainly  distinguishes  the 
three  elements  before  mentioned,  namely,  nichema, 
rouah,  nephesh. 

When  man  quits  this  unhappy  earth  he  strips  him- 
self little  by  little,  says  the  Zohar,  of  his  covering  of 
vices.  His  soul  returns  to  the  substance  whence  it 
came,  after  having,  by  a  series  of  transmigrations, 
recovered  consciousness .  of  itself,  and  after  having 
thus  developed  its  latent  perfections. 

In  the  Bible  itself  occur  several  passages  confirma- 
tory of  this  notion.  We  are  told  that  Hebrew  children 
were  predestinate ;  and  Jeremiah  himself  declared  that 
he  was  known  of  God  even  before  he  was  conceived. 
It  is  admitted  that,  at  the  time  of  Christ,  the  doctrine 
of  reincarnation  was  taught  by  certain  Jewish  schools 
or  sects,  notably  the  Essenes  and  Pharisees;  and  pas- 
sages alluding  thereto  can  be  quoted  from  the  Gospels. 

We  shall  not  further  insist  upon  the  discussions  to 
which  the  eschatological  beliefs  of  the  Hebrews  may 
give  rise ;  we  aimed  merely  at  showing  that  they  were 
cognisant  of  the  idea  of  survival.  Many  of  them 
adopted  it,  and  thus  their  evidence  is  added  to  the 
unanimous  testimony  of  all  antiquity. 


CHAPTER   X 

THE   GREEKS 

Immortality  inherent  in  the  Traditions,  Poetry,  Philosophy,  and  Re- 
ligion of  the  Greeks.  —  Their  Ancient  Custom  of  sacrificing  to  the 
Shades  of  the  Heroes.  —  Their  Horror  of  being  deprived  of  Sepul- 
ture.—  Examples  from  Homer,  Pindar,  and  Valerius  Maximus. — 
Funeral  Banquets  participated  in  by  the  Dead.  —  Tombs  decorated 
with  Images  of  the  Goddesses  of  Life.  —  Hesiod's  Description  of 
the  State  of  the  Dead.  —  Reinach's  Interpretation  of  the  Eternally 
Renewed  Labours  of  Sisyphus  and  Others.  —  Metempsychosis.  — 
Marks  by  which  the  Greek  Mythology  shows  its  Egyptian  Origin. 

—  Results  of  the  Visit  of  the  Poet  Orpheus  to  Egypt.  —  The  Doc- 
trine of  Immortality  formulated  anew  by  Pythagoras.  —  How  he 
became  initiated  into  the  Egyptian,  Jewish,  and  Assyrian  Religions. 

—  His  View  of  the  Relations  of  Body,  Soul,  and  Spirit.  —  The  Role 
of  the  Etheric  Fluid.  —  This  Fluid  as  viewed  by  Pythagoras  and 
by  Newton. — The  Delphic  Oracle.  —  Heaven  without  Reincarna- 
tion only  for  the  Few.  —  Pythagoras's  Theosophy. — Survival  the 
Basis  of  the  Pythagorean  Doctrine  and  of  the  Revelations  made  in 
the  Mysteries.  —  The  Sacred  Symbols  used  in  the  Mysteries.  —  The 
Survival  Idea  expanded  by  Plato.  —  The  Influence  of  his  Ideas  in 
developing  Christian  Dogma.  —  His  Belief  in  Plural  Existences. — 
His  Views  on  Man's  Immaterial  Part.  —  The  Objective  Existence 
of  Ideas.  —  Resemblance  between  Plato's  Theory  of  the  Divine 
Logos  and  the  Exordium  of  St.  John's  Gospel.  —  Immortality  and 
Reincarnation  in  the  Writings  of  the  Neoplatonists. 

A  LTHOUGH  in  the  case  of  the  Greeks  the  doc- 
/\  trine  of  immortaHty  did  not  form  the  basis 
X  JL  of  the  relations  of  civil  life  or  of  the  na- 
tional institutions,  nevertheless  we  are  compelled  to 
acknowledge  that  such  a  doctrine  was  an  integral 
portion  of  the  traditions  of  the  Hellenic  race,  through- 
out its  brilliant  career.     It  was  at  all  times  upheld 


110  FUTURE  LIFE 

by  its  foremost  men,  whether  poets  or  philosophers, 
and  was  the  principal  subject  of  the  teachings  given 
at  the  Mysteries,  when  the  holy  doctrine  was  revealed 
to  the  initiated. 

Going  back  to  heroic  times,  we  find  survival  already 
affirmed  and  undisputed.  Warriors  who  have  fallen 
in  battle  still  preserve  a  life  of  their  own  beyond  the 
grave.  They  are  the  vigilant  watchers  over  their 
own  cities,  the  protectors  of  their  families,  the  invis- 
ible guests  at  all  civil  or  national  festivals,  the  trusty 
allies  of  their  posterity,  whom  they  accompany  into 
the  thick  of  the  fight,  the  inspired  pilots  of  those 
adventurous  generations  which  put  out  to  seek  new 
countries  far  away. 

At  the  outset  of  Greek  history,  especially,  in  the 
early  poets,  such  as  Homer  for  instance,  we  discover 
the  more  or  less  crude  conception  which  we  have 
already  remarked  among  other  ancient  civilisations 
and  which  always  led  to  ancestor-worship. 

The  soul  of  the  deceased,  his  shade  proper 
{ethaykov),  maintains  a  semi-conscious  existence,  in 
which  it  is  still  sensible  to  some  physical  needs, 
notably  that  of  food.  It  is  still  attracted  by  the 
savour-  of  roasted  flesh,  for  upon  that  it  depends 
for  life.  When  Odysseus  wishes  to  summon  up  a 
spirit  he  slaughters  young  kine,  and  the  smell  of  the 
blood  immediately  brings  about  him  the  pale  shades 
of  the  heroes.  Starting  with  this  idea,  the  Greeks, 
like  all  other  ancient  peoples,  came  to  attach  extreme 
importance  to  the  right  placing  of  a  grave,  and  to 
the  keeping  up  of  funeral  offerings ;  several  of  the  in- 
testine conflicts  which  wasted  Greece  in  early  times 
were  actuated  by  no  other  motive.     Deprivation  of 


THE   GREEKS  '   111 

sepulture  was  the  greatest  of  all  calamities,  and  was 
at  all  costs  to  be  avoided;  for  the  neglected  soul 
did  not  scruple  to  harass  the  living  in  order  to  obtain 
its  due.  In  the  Iliad,  Priam  humiliated  himself  so 
far  as  to  supplicate  Achilles  for  the  remains  of 
Hector,  while  in  the  Odyssey  Elpenor,  one  of  Odys- 
seus' comrades  who  succumbed  to  an  accident,  ap- 
peared before  him  praying  that  his  body  might  be 
burned  and  that  he  might  not  be  compelled  to  haunt 
him  further.  Pindar  also  tells  us  that  the  soul  of 
Phryxos,  who  died  at  Colchis,  rose  before  Pelias  and 
asked  that  his  remains  should  be  brought  back  to 
their  native  land,^  and  Valerius  Maximus  recounts 
how  the  poet  Simonides  was  saved  from  shipwreck 
by  the  appearance  of  the  shade  of  a  dead  man  whose 
bo.dy  he  had  taken  up  and  interred.^  We  may  also 
recall  the  brave  self-sacrifice  of  Antigone,  who  did 
not  shrink  from  the  risk  of  death  by  her  neglect  of 
the  royal  prohibition  to  bury  her  two  brothers  Poly- 
neices  and  Eteocles.  The  eloquent  protest  in  which 
she  upheld  the  law  divine  against  the  injustice  of 
tyrants  emphasises  for  the  first  time  the  awakening 
of  human  conscience,  while  it  testifies  to  the  ex- 
treme importance  which  attached  to  burial  in  ancient 
Greece. 

The  Greeks  held  funeral  banquets  also,  to  which 
the  souls  of  ancestors  were  summoned,  and  the  head 
of  the  family  kindled  the  holy  fire  upon  the  altar  of 
Zeus,  which  was  to  consume  the  food  set  apart  for 
the  dead  {iravanrepiila).  By  the  Athenians  the  second 
day  of  the  feast  of  Anthesteria  was  consecrated  to 
the  manes.    The  notion  of  survival,  limited  to  a  semi- 

1  Pythian  Odes,  iv.  284.  2  De  dictis,  etc.,  i.  7. 


112  FUTURE  LIFE 

material  shade  haunting  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
corpse,  was  bound  up  in  the  Greek  mind  with  the 
hope  of  a  future  resurrection  of  man  in  his  physical 
entirety.  Of  this  we  find  evidence  in  the  grave- 
ornaments.  As  we  have  remarked  before,  the  deco- 
ration of  prehistoric  monuments  nearly  always  takes 
the  form  of  an  appeal  to  the  powers  of  life.  This 
meaning  appears,  even  more  clearly  than  elsewhere, 
in  the  case  of  Greek  and  Roman  tombs.  In  them 
are  found  earthenware  busts  representing  the  god- 
desses of  life,  Demeter,  Persephone,  and  Alcestis, 
and  they  were  so  placed  that  the  goddess  should 
seem  to  be  rising  from  the  earth,  the  lower  half  of 
her  body  still  being  below  the  surface.  It  may  be 
added  that  even  in  the  earliest  times  it  is  possible 
to  find  passages  in  Greek  authors  implying  a  belief 
in  conscious  immortality,  together  with  responsibility 
for  acts  committed  during  life.  Thus  Hesiod  de- 
scribes the  future  existence  of  men's  souls,  and  the 
two  opposite  alternatives  awaiting  them  after  death: 

"Wrapped  in  fluid-like  envelopes  rendering  them  invisible, 
the  souls  of  the  righteous  wander  over  the  earth  wielding  their 
regal  powers.  They  mark  the  good  and  evil  deeds,  and  they 
extend  their  special  protection  to  such  as  they  have  loved  in  life. 
As  to  the  souls  of  the  wicked,  they  are  held  in  Tartarus,  where 
they  are  punished  by  the  ever-present  memory  of  the  crimes 
which  they  committed." 

In  the  various  myths  and  legends  we  see  that 
certain  great  evil-doers  are  condemned  to  an  unlim- 
ited expiation,  and  are  compelled  to  renew  constantly 
some  useless,  fruitless  toil.  Sisyphus  eternally  rolls 
his  backward-falling  rock;   the  Dana'ides  are  always 


THE  GREEKS  US 

filling  a  cask  which  still  remains  empty;  Tityos 
watches  his  entrails  ever  being  renewed,  to  be  de- 
voured by  an  insatiate  vulture. 

Owing  to  M.  Salomon  Reinach's  ingenious  inter- 
pretation, it  is  generally  accepted  that  these  strange 
legends  only  refer  to  a  perpetuation  of  the  form  of 
the  particular  hero,  just  in  the  same  way  as  a  statue 
might  represent  his  principal  form  of  activity  during 
life,  or  might  depict  him  in  the  pose  in  which  he 
appeared  to  be  when  death  overtook  him.  But  to 
our  thinking  the  very  idea  of  the  infinite  repetition 
of  the  same  movements,  of  which  antiquity  never 
so  much  as  suspected  the  meaning,  testifies  to  the 
existence  of  a  belief  in  immortality  at  the  very  be- 
ginnings of  Greek  history.  It  might  be  added  that 
this  striking  picture  of  unavailing  effort,  and  of 
unappeased  but  constantly  renewed  desire,  gives,  per- 
haps, as  good  an  idea  as  may  be  of  the  state  which 
possibly  awaits  the  disincarnate  soul  still  possessed, 
in  the  world  beyond,  of  the  carnal  needs  and  de- 
sires, which  it  cannot  satisfy.  Side  by  side  with 
the  notion  of  immortality  we  find  that  of  a  plurality 
of  existences,  that  is,  of  metempsychosis.  The  souls 
which  are  to  return  to  earth  pass  the  river  of  Lethe, 
drinking  its  waters  of  forgetfulness,  and  thus  becom- 
ing oblivious  of  their  former  existence. 

It  is  this  doctrine  which  lies  at  the  root  of  the 
Orphic  hymns: 

"  Love  light  and  not  darkness.  Remember  the  journey's  end 
while  you  travel.  When  the  souls  return  to  the  light,  they  wear 
upon  their  ethereal  body,  like  hideous  scars,  all  the  sins  of  their 
lives,  and  to  wash  them  away  they  must  go  back  to  earth.  But 
the  strong  and  the  pure  depart  to  the  sun  of  Dionysus." 

8 


114  FUTURE  LIFE 

The  idea  of  immortality  is  thus  plainly  set  forth 
at  the  very  outset  of  Greek  history,  and  Aristotle 
is  reported  by  Plutarch  to  have  said  that  it  was  an 
opinion  dating  from  the  most  remote  antiquity,  and 
to  which  no  one  could  assign  an  author  or  a  begin- 
ning. There  can  be  little  doubt  that  it  came  from 
the  old  civilisations  of  Asia,  especially  from  the 
Egyptians  and  Phoenicians,  who,  as  a  seafaring 
people,  were  in  constant  touch  with  the  Greeks.  The 
profound  influence  of  Egyptian  art  upon  Greek  art 
in  its  beginnings  is  clearly  proved,  and  it  is  trace- 
able in  the  arrangement  of  their  monuments,  in  the 
form  of  their  columns,  and  in  the  Greek  sphinxes, 
an  obvious  importation  from  Egypt.  Greek  mythol- 
ogy likewise  bears  numerous  marks  of  its  Egyptian 
origin,  especially  in  all  that  regards  the  nether-gods 
and  the  judgment  awaiting  the  soul  after  death. 
Charon's  bark  is  the  vessel  which  carried  the  corpse 
down  the  Nile  to  its  burial  vault;  and  the  dog  Cer- 
berus, which  guards  the  entrance  to  the  hall  in  which 
the  three  relentless  judges  pass  sentence  upon  the 
dead  soul,  is  apparently  the  same  as  Anubis,  the 
dog-headed  god  of  Egypt,  who  also  played  a  part 
at  the  trial  of  souls,  and  whose  business  it  was  to 
record  the  sentences  passed. 

Numerous  commentators  agree  in  identifying  the 
goddess  of  the  Eleusinian  Mysteries,  Demeter  or 
Persephone,  with  Isis,  and  also  in  considering  the 
Dionysiac  Mysteries  to  be  one  with  the  worship  of 
Horus. 

The  legend  of  the  poet  Orpheus,  who  originated 
the  Mysteries  of  Dionysus,  informs  us  that  he  actu- 
ally did  go  to  Egypt  in  order  to  be  initiated  in  the 


THE  GREEKS  115 

temple  of  Memphis,  whence  he  returned  with  the 
name  Orpheus,  —  a  form  of  the  Egyptian  Arpha, 
meaning  He  that  healeth  by  light.  He  revolution- 
ised the  worship  of  Bacchus,  whom  he  idealised  under 
the  name  of  Dionysus  and  assimilated  to  Horus,  the 
son  of  the  god  Osiris.  At  the  same  time  he  intro- 
duced the  Mysteries  embodying  the  teaching  which 
he  had  imbibed  in  Egypt  and  Phoenicia  concerning 
the  ultimate  destiny  of  man's  soul. 

Thus  a  belief  in  immortality  is  affirmed,  as  we 
have  seen,  by  the  earliest  of  the  legendary  poets,  — 
by  Orpheus  and  by  Homer  and  Hesiod,  —  and  was 
subsequently  handed  down,  though  somewhat  ob- 
scured, in  the  Dionysiac  Mysteries.  Six  centuries 
later  we  find  it  formulated  anew  by  Pythagoras,  one 
of  the  greatest  philosophers  the  world  has  known. 
He  arose  in  the  sixth  century  before  Christ,  much 
about  the  same  time  as  Lao-Tsze  in  China  and 
Sakyamuni  in  India,  and  his  teaching  was  almost 
identical  with  that  of  his  famed  contemporaries.  It 
was  as  if  Fate  had  wished  to  bring  back  the  three 
great  races  of  antiquity  simultaneously  to  the  doc- 
trine taught  by  their  founders. 

Pythagoras  himself  may  be  looked  upon  as  a 
founder,  for  he  contributed  in  no  small  measure  to 
give  the  Hellenic  character  one  of  its  most  typical 
features  in  religious  philosophy;  and  although  his 
teaching  in  its  entirety  was  unhappily  reserved  for 
the  initiate,  he  none  the  less  created  a  great  philo- 
sophical school,  which  exerted  a  predominant  influ- 
ence upon  the  history  of  ancient  thought.  Like 
Orpheus,  Pythagoras  also  went  to  Egypt  to  learn, 


116  FUTURE  LIFE 

and  there  he  is  said  to  have  sojourned  twenty-two 
years,  until  he  reached  the  highest  stage  of  initia- 
tion. His  stay  in  Eg}^pt  coincided  with  the  invasion 
of  the  Persians  under  their  king  Cambyses,  by  whose 
orders  he  was  taken  to  Babylon,  where  he  remained 
twelve  years,  so  that  he  was  able  to  become  initiated 
by  the  Jewish  and  Assyrian  priests  also.  Later,  on 
his  return  to  Greece,  he  was  in  a  position  to  found 
a  philosophical  doctrine  based  upon  his  acquaintance 
with  the  great  religions  of  mankind. 

With  regard  to  the  nature  of  man,  which  chiefly 
interests  us,  Pythagoras  adopted  all  the  main  dis- 
|tinctions  put  forward  by  those  religions;  in  addi- 
ition  to  the  physical  body,  he  asserted  the  existence 
m  man  of  a  spiritual  element  possessing  unity  and 
surrounded  by  a  semi-material  soul.  This  soul  is 
like  in  appearance  to  the  body,  and  remains  united 
thereto  during  earthly  life,  for  without  it  the  body 
would  instantly  perish.  It  is  intimately  connected 
with  the  immaterial  spirit  which  it  enfolds,  as  the 
thoughts  and  volitions  of  the  spirit  react  continually 
upon  the  constitution  of  the  soul,  attracting  and  re- 
pelling the  semi-material  elements  of  which  it  is 
compounded.  At  death  the  soul  finally  becomes  dis-. 
severed  from  the  body,  withdrawing  with  it  the  spirit,  = 
and  it  proceeds  to  a  region  in  space  corresponding 
to  the  more  or  less  material  constitution  which  it  has 
formed  during  its  terrestrial  existence.  According 
to  Plato,  if  it  is  pure  and  righteous  it  soars  with  the 
spirit  like  some  heavenly  car  upward  to  the  spheres 
divine;  but  otherwise,  it  falls  back  into  the  dark 
regions  of  matter. 

The  subtle  element  constituting  the  spirit-envelope 


THE  GREEKS  117 

in  man  is  a  particle  drawn  from  that  imponderable 
fluid  filling  the  entire  universe.  This  etheric  fluid  is 
a  kind  of  living  and  plastic  substance  permeating  all 
visible  objects,  and  the  generator  of  form  and  con- 
dition. By  its  agency  divine  thought  exerts  its  power 
upon  the  worlds,  for  it  is  the  great  intermediary 
between  the  visible  and  the  invisible,  between  the 
spirit  and  matter.  In  permeating  man  it  becomes 
modified  or  transformed,  and  becomes  rarefied  or 
concentrated  under  the  action  of  volition,  according 
to  the  power  or  elevation  of  the  spirit,  whose  astral 
envelope  it  forms.  This  is  the  sense  in  which  Pythag- 
oras views  man  as  a  kind  of  minute  universe  or 
microcosm.  To  him  the  material  evolution  of  worlds 
and  the  spiritual  evolution  of  souls  appear  as  par- 
allel and  concordant  facts,  explanatory  of  each  other. 
The  past  history  of  the  universe  is  inscribed  in 
invisible  images  upon  the  astral  light,  and  there,  too, 
is  pictured  the  future  with  the  living  souls  which 
destiny  will  compel  to  enter  the  flesh.  This  fluid, 
which  is  spread  throughout  the  universe,  animating 
all  beings  and  all  forms,  constitutes,  to  use  Newton's 
expression,  the  sensorium  Dei,  just  as  in  man  it  is 
the  sensorium  of  the  immaterial  spirit.  It  may  oc- 
casionally, especially  during  sleep,  detach  itself  from 
the  physical  body,  and  thus  enter  into  communica- 
tion with  the  universal  ether.  Thus  it  was  that 
Pythagoras  explained  the  phenomena  of  somnambu- 
lism, trance,  clairvoyance,  and  prescience  of  the 
future,  as  manifested  by  the  Pythia  at  Delphi,  when 
uttering  the  oracles  of  Apollo.  It  is  the  same  ex- 
planation that  we  encounter  in  the  Eumenides  of 
^schylus,  when  he  makes  the  shade  of  Clytemnestra, 


118  FUTURE  LIFE 

who  appears  and  shows  her  wounds  to  the  sleeping 
,Furies,  say:  "  Behold  them  while  ye  are  asleep;  then 
'it  is  that  the  spirit  has  the  most  piercing  eyes,  for  it 
distinguishes  things  that  are  hidden  from  it  in  the 
broad  light  of  day." 

The  result  of  physical  death  is  to  replace  the  dis- 
incarnate  soul  in  its  astral  surroundings,  thus  per- 
mitting it  to  enjoy  the  view  of  that  luminous  world 
which  is  hidden  from  it  entirely  during  life.  Then 
it  is  that  it  enjoys  the  true  celestial  bliss.  But  as  a 
rule,  it  has  not  acquired  such  a  degree  of  purity  as 
is  requisite  for  the  eternity  of  that  enjoyment,  and 
it  is  bound  to  undergo  fresh  incarnations,  and  per- 
haps many  of  them,  before  it  can  expiate  its  past 
errors  and  deserve  final  admission  into  the  abode  of 
the  blessed. 

Consequently  it  returns  to  earthly  life,  assuming 
such  physical  and  moral  condition  as  may  be  deter- 
mined by  the  degree  of  progress  to  which  former 
existences  have  brought  it.  It  sets  out,  so  to  speak, 
on  a  fresh  march  along  the  road  of  eternity.  This 
is  precisely  the  doctrine  of  successive  lives  which 
we  have  already  met  with  in  the  occult  teaching  of 
primitive  religions.  Pythagoras  adopted  it,  making 
it  more  precise;  and  although  he  communicated  it 
to  none  but  the  initiate,  he  did  not  hinder  entirely 
th'e  spread  of  his  secret  doctrine;  he  was  even  con- 
sidered in  classical  antiquity  to  have  been  its  original 
inventor. 

It  is  by  reincarnation  that  Pythagoras  explained 
the  inequality  of  human  conditions  with  its  apparent 
injustices;  and  he  endeavoured  to  solve  the  impene- 
trable mystery  of  the  existence  of  good  and  evil.    In 


THE  GREEKS  119 

his  view  man  in  his  present  state  is  placed  half-way 
between  two  opposite  worlds,  —  the  world  of  matter, 
to  which  he  is  still  partially  attached  and  which  is 
governed  by  the  law  of  destiny  with  all  its  uncon- 
scious and  inevitable  fatalities,  and  the  luminous 
world  of  the  spirit,  which  has  laws  of  its  own  as 
yet  undiscovered,  but  which  are  not  blind  like  the 
laws  of  matter;  they  merely  carry  these  latter  to 
their  completion  in  that  immaterial  world,  of  which 
they  correct  the  injustices,  and  thus  reduce  them  to 
harmonious  concord  in  the  accomplishment  of  the 
Divine  Being's  secret  design. 

Following  the  theosophical  doctrine,  Pythagoras 
considered  the  soul  as  being  triple  in  its  essence: 
instinctive  in  so  far  as  it  felt  the  necessities  of 
material  life  and  the  physical  world;  animic  in  so 
far  as  it  was  sensitive  to  the  various  emotions  of 
affection,  hatred,  or  the  passions;  and  intellectual  in 
so  far  as  it  rose  to  the  comprehension  of  divine  laws. 
These  three  elements  are  united  into  one  whole  con- 
stituting the  human  soul,  which  is  itself  governed  by 
the  personal  ego,  volition.  They  nevertheless  pre- 
serve a  certain  relative  independence  permitting  us 
to  suppose  that  they  do  not  remain  eternally  united 
after  death. 

Not  only  to  avoid  repetitions,  but  also  to  avoid 
going  into  the  very  debatable  details  of  a  doctrine 
which  is  known  only  in  its  broad  outlines,  we  do 
not  think  it  necessary  to  expound  the  philosophical 
doctrine  of  Pythagoras  any  further.  In  afterwards 
discussing  the  hypotheses  of  the  theosophical  school, 
we  shall  have  occasion  to  recur  to  it ;  for  that  school 
is  directly  connected  with  the  teachings  of  the  great 


120  FUTURE  LIFE 

philosopher,  whom  it  looks  upon  as  one  of  the  earliest 
originators  and  masters. 

Faith,  therefore,  in  survival,  which  lies  at  the  root 
of  the  Pythagorean  doctrine,  is  also  the  basis  of 
those  occult  revelations  which  w^ere  made  in  the 
Mysteries  so  famous  in  antiquity;  for  the  initiates 
discovered  under  more  or  less  obscure  symbols,  grad- 
ually explained  to  them,  an  insight  into  the  future 
destiny  of  man's  soul.  Unhappily  we  lack  complete 
information  as  to  those  Mysteries,  and  we  cannot 
estimate  their  teaching  in  all  its  completeness.  We 
can,  however,  assert  upon  the  concordant  testimony 
of  ancient  authorities,  that  it  was  connected  with  the 
Pythagorean  tenets,  and  admitted  the  plurality  of 
worlds  and  successive  existences  of  the  human  soul, 
together  with  the  dogma  of  divine  unity.  This  cir- 
cumstance is  all  the  more  readily  explained,  because, 
as  we  have  already  seen,  it  coincides  exactly  with  the 
teaching  of  ancient  religions;  and  Pythagoras  ap- 
pears to  have  possessed  acquaintance  with  the  move- 
ment of  the  earth,  which  he  acquired  without  doubt 
from  the  Egyptians.  According  to  Pythagoras,  the 
principal  aim  of  the  Mysteries  was  to  disclose  to 
their  votaries  the  hopes  which  death  offers ;  and 
this  the  herald  proclaimed  at  their  beginning,  after 
having  pronounced  the  sacred  formula  e/cat  earay 
fie^riko^^    commanding  the  uninitiated  to  withdraw. 

"  You  are  here,"  he  cried,  "  upon  the  threshold 
of  Persephone.  To  understand  the  life  to  come  and 
our  present  state,  first  must  be  undergone  the  neces- 
sary test,  which  consists  in  passing  through  the  realm 
of  death.  That  ye  may  enjoy  light,  ye  must  know 
how  to  brave  darkness." 


THE  GREEKS  121 

The  initiate  then  received  the  holy  articles,  the 
meaning  of  which  he  was  to  discover  later;  the  fir 
cone  or  symbol  of  generation,  the  serpent  coiled  in 
a  spiral,  representing  the  evolution  of  the  soul,  and 
last  of  all  the  egg,  which  was  a  token  of  the 
resurrection. 

Meanwhile  the  story  of  Persephone,  passing  by 
turns  from  heaven  to  hell,  was  acted  before  him  as 
a  kind  of  ritual  ceremony,  and  he  was  taught  to 
see  therein  a  symbolical  presentment  of  the  human 
soul  in  bondage  to  matter  during  earthly  life,  and 
delivered  over  to  all  kinds  of  torment^  and  monsters 
in  the  next  world,  if  it  had  become  the  slave  of  its 
passions.  If,  on  the  contrary,  it  had  succeeded  in 
becoming  pure  by  restraint,  it  awoke  spotless  and 
bright,  and  joined  its  mother  Demeter,  the  symbol 
of  divine  intelligence. 

The  teaching  of  the  Mysteries  remained  with  the 
initiate,  but  the  doctrine  of  survival,  which  formed 
its  essential  part,  was  openly  maintained  by  the 
majority  of  Greek  philosophers,  and  after  Pythag- 
oras it  found  an  exponent  in  the  most  illustrious 
among  them,  the  divine  Plato.  He  took  up  the  idea 
and  expanded  it  to  such  good  purpose  that  to  this 
day  he  has  remained  the  undisputed  master  of  all 
spiritualistic  schools.  Platonic  ideas  even  made 
themselves  felt  in  the  development  of  Christian 
dogma;  and  the  Fathers  of  the  Church,  struck  by 
the  analogies  between  his  philosophical  conceptions 
and  their  own  religious  teachings,  saw  in  the  great 
Greek  philosopher  a  true  forerunner  of  Christ,  who 
had  brought  into  the  pagan  world  an  echo  of  the 
primitive    revelation.      In    the    beautiful    dialogue 


122  FUTURE  LIFE 

"  Phaedo  "  Plato  tells  us  that  the  conscious  part  of 
man  is  immortal.  He  clearly  distinguishes  two 
contrary  elements,  —  the  physical  body  and  the  im- 
material soul;  the  former  complex  and  constantly 
changing,  liable  to  death  and  dissolution,  the  latter 
elementary  and  indestructible,  always  identical  with 
itself  in  its  voluntary  and  conscious  principle,  im- 
mortal and  like  to  the  divine.  At  death  the  soul  is 
purified  by  its  severance  from  the  physical  body,  but 
must  render  account  to  the  gods  of  its  employment 
of  life.  If  the  soul  reaches  the  great  beyond  unsul- 
lied by  the  body  which  it  had  animated,  having 
avoided  all  opportunities  of  taint,  and  having  con- 
centrated itself  inwardly  in  the  search  for  truth  and 
for  the  knowledge  how  to  die  properly,  it  is  taken 
into  the  bosom  of  the  Supreme  Being,  which  is  im- 
material like  itself,  undying  and  full  of  wisdom.  It 
is  freed  from  its  errors,  its  ignorance,  and  its  fears, 
and,  say  those  initiated  into  the  Mysteries,  it  lives 
in  eternity  with  the  gods.  As  for  the  guilty  souls,! 
they  undergo  the  penalties  befitting  their  misdeeds, 
and  are  purged  from  their  sins  before  receiving  the 
reward  of  their  good  works. 

Souls  that  are  not  wholly  guilty  return  to  bodily 
life,  there  to  undergo  a  fresh  trial,  oblivious  of  their 
past  existence.  In  the  mind  of  Plato,  as  in  that  of 
Pythagoras,  the  doctrine  of  survival  was  supple- 
mented by  the  doctrine  of  plural  existences.  The 
souls  are  older  than  the  bodies,  and  are  reborn  in 
Hades  before  returning  to  earthly  life.  According 
to  a  conception  reminiscent  of  the  Chaldean  ferohcrs, 
each  man  possesses  a  daemon  which  follows  him 
in  his  consecutive  lives  and  leads  him  after  death 


THE  GREEKS  123 

down  into  the  lower  world  for  his  trial.  Many  souls 
go  into  Acheron,  and  after  a  certain  space  come 
back  to  earth  for  reembodiment.  Unpardonable  of- 
fences hurl  the  soul  down  into  Tartarus. 

Man  has  recollections  more  or  less  clear  of  his 
previous  lives,  and  these  recollections  take  the  form 
of  intuitive  knowledge.  Innate  ideas  are  a  phase  of 
this  kind  of  memory;  they  are  property  saved  by 
the  soul  from  its  various  incarnations.  It  cannot 
be  decisively  stated  whether  Plato  accepted  the  pos- 
sibility of  the  reembodiment  of  a  human  soul  in  the 
body  of  an  animal  or  in  plants;  perhaps  he  shared 
on  this  point  the  views  of  his  master  Timaeus  of 
Locri,  who  saw  therein  a  potent  means  of  acting 
on  the  popular  imagination,  or  perhaps  he  feared 
too  openly  to  reveal  the  doctrine  of  the  Mysteries. 
As  far  as  regards  the  constitution  of  the  immaterial 
part  of  man,  Plato  admits,  as  did  Pythagoras  before 
him,  that  it  is  a  complex  assemblage  of  relatively 
independent  elements.  Foremost  he  places  the  im- 
material soul,  the  spirit  properly  so  called,  the  X0709, 
possessing  consciousness,  intelligence,  and  volition, 
capable  of  choosing  between  good  and  evil;  he 
locates  it  in  the  head,  and  confers  upon  it  alone  the 
character  of  indissoluble  unity  as  well  as  immortal- 
ity. Lower  down  come  two  semi-material,  fluid-like 
souls  which  are  doomed  to  perish;  one  is  the  seat 
of  the  passions  and  of  the  affections  and  is  located  in 
the  heart,  while  the  other  is  the  seat  of  all  sensual 
desires  and  is  placed  in  the  liver. 

These  two  souls  are  devoid  of  reason,  but  are 
gifted  with  strong  powers  of  perception  and  voli- 
tion; they  are  in  connection  with  the  reasoning  soul, 


1^4  FUTURE  LIFE 

the  spirit,  which  is  cognisant  of  what  goes  on  in 
them  and  issues  instructions  to  them. 

The  famous  theory  of  Plato  regarding  ideas  is  well 
known.  These  he  views  as  images  created -by  the 
mind,  and  he  attributes  to  them  an  objective  exist- 
ence. We  have  thought  fit  to  mention  this  theory 
here,  because  it  has  been  revived  under  slightly 
altered  form  by  the  modern  theosophical  school. 
Plato  regards  ideas  as  really  distinct  entities,  the 
eternal  objects  of  divine  thought,  and  not  merely 
the  acts  of  that  thought.  He  ascribes  an  objective 
reality  to  such  abstract  ideas  as  "  the  true,"  "  the 
beautiful,"  "  the  good,"  which  he  makes  the  neces- 
sary archetypes  of  all  good  thoughts,  the  living  forms 
which  our  soul  comes  to  perceive  in  proportion  as 
it  is  worthy  to  do  so.  Soaring  still  higher,  he  does 
not  hesitate  to  affirm-  the  objective  existence  of 
supreme  Reason,  the  divine  logos,  previous  to  the 
creation,  the  laws  of  which  it  renders  concrete,  and 
which  it  maintains  by  the  constant  renewal  of  its 
providential  activity. 

This  fine  theory,  which  agrees  in  certain  respects, 
as  we  have  seen,  with  the  great  primitive  doctrines, 
was  subsequently  taken  up  by  the  Neoplatonists  of 
Alexandria.  It  also  inspired  the  magnificent  exor- 
dium of  St.  John's  Gospel,  which  sees  in  the  inde- 
pendent personality  of  Christ  divine  Reason  itself, 
the  Word  par  excellence,  the  logos  uncreated. 

We  know  that  besides  this  conception  of  the  logos 
the  Neoplatonists  also  adopted  Plato's  ideas  concern- 
ing the  immortality  of  the  soul  and  its  plurality  of 
existences.  This  we  find  asserted  in  the  works  of 
their  principal  writers,  such  as  Plotinus,  Porphyry, 


THE  GREEKS  125 

and  Jamblichus.  It  was,  moreover,  under  the  influ- 
ence of  the  Alexandrian,  school  that  belief  in  the 
immortality  of  the  soul  spread  through  Judea  about 
the  time  of  the  coming  of  Christ.  Already  it  was 
accepted  by  certain  important  schools,  such  as  the 
Pharisees,  and  especially  the  Essenes,  who  seem  to 
have  possessed  wider  acquaintance  with  the  holy 
'doctrine,  as  we  remarked  in  treating  of  the  Jews. 


CHAPTER    XI 

THE   ROMANS 

Roman  Ideas  and  Institutions  bequeathed  to  Modern  Civilisations.  — 
Resemblance  of  the  Ancestor-worship  of  the  Romans  to  that  of  the 
Chinese  and  other  Ancient  Nations. — Care  of  the  Romans  for  the 
Happiness  of  the  Shades.  —  Oiferings  to  the  Lares.  —  Functions  of 
the  Pater.  — The  Absolute  Need  of  Heirs  in  every  Family.  —  Impor- 
tance  of  the  Tutelary  Deities  at  all  Family  Ceremonies.  —  Relation 
of  City  Government  to  Family  Organisation.  —  Patricians  and  Ple- 
beians.—  Recognition  of  the  City  Gods  in  Wars  and  Treaties. — 
The  Etruscans  probably  acquainted  with  the  Egyptian  Doctrine  of 
the  Nature  of  Man.  —  Testimonies  of  Cato  and  Cicero.  —  Roman 
View  of  Immortality  not  Personal,  but  Collective.  —  Fear  of  the 
Future  Life  combated  by  Lucretius,  and  shared  in  by  Virgil.  — 
Belief  that  the  Souls  of  the  Dead  lived  in  or  near  the  Grave. — 
Spirit-raising.  —  The  Animus  and  the  Anima.  —  Ovid's  Recogni- 
tion of  Transmigration.  —  Survival  taught  in  the  ^neid.  —  How 
Rome  was  prepared  to  receive  the  Christian  Doctrine  of  Personal 
Immortality.  —  Spread  of  this   Doctrine   throughout  the   World. 

THE  Romans,  who  come  last  among  the  races 
of  antiquity,  are  found  practising  ancestor- 
worship  from  the  very  outset  of  their  his- 
tory. Doubtless  they  borrowed  it  from  yet  earlier 
peoples.  Upon  it  they  founded  the  peculiar  family 
organisation  which  contributed  in  no  small  degree  to 
their  wonderful  success  as  a  nation.  Throughout  the 
ages  they  preserved  the  institutions  which  they  had 
thus  founded,  albeit  they  had  long  forgotten  the 
originating  ideas.  Those  institutions  they  bequeathed 
to  modem  civilisations,  for  we  can  still  discover  their 
mark  upon  our  laws  and  customs  at  the  present  day. 


THE  ROMANS  127 

Despite  the  way  in  which  they  always  held  aloof 
from  metaphysical  speculations,  the  Romans  never- 
theless exerted  a  deep  influence  upon  the  evolution 
of  the  idea  of  survival,  an  influence  mainly  due  to 
their  political  preponderance.  As  they  absorbed  the 
nations  whom  they  conquered,  they  brought  about 
the  union  and  fusion  of  doctrines  up  to  then  the 
special  property  of  various  races,  and  they  thus  paved 
the  way  for  the  transformed  dogma  which  was  to 
guide  mankind  in  modern  times.  In  this  sense  it 
might  be  said  that  they  formed  an  epitome  of  the 
history  of  antiquity,  at  the  close  of  which  they  stand. 

Like  those  of  the  majority  of  primitive  races,  the 
institutions  of  ancient  Rome  were  based  entirely  upon 
the  notion  of  the  collective  immortality  of  ancestors, 
and  upon  the  need  for  perpetuating  the  sacrifices 
requisite  to  them  in  their  existence  beyond  the  grave. 
Fustel  de  Coulanges  has  demonstrated  this  fact  be- 
yond room  for  doubt,  in  his  great  works  upon  the 
subject.  We  now  possess  decisive  confirmation  in  the 
comparison  which  we  can  institute  with  the  parallel 
customs  of  all  other  ancient  peoples,  and  especially 
with  those  of  the  nations  of  the  Far  East  by  whom 
they  are  still  preserved. 

Throughout  the  whole  family  system  and  through- 
out the  provisions  of  private  law  there  exists  so  com- 
plete an  analogy,  even  extending  to  minute  details, 
that  what  we  have  already  advanced  with  regard  to 
the  Chinese  may  be  applied,  practically  without  modi- 
fication, to  the  Romans.  Both  cases  are  merely  the 
putting  into  practice  of  an  identical  principle  and 
identical  beliefs. 


128  FUTURE  LIFE 

In  agreement  with  primeval  belief,  the  founders  of 
Rome  admitted  that  man  embodied  an  immaterial 
element,  the  less  subtle  part  whereof  remained  con- 
fined within  the  tomb  and  was  more  or  less  subject 
to  the  necessities  of  mortal  existence,  whereas  the 
purely  immaterial  part  became  united  with  the  ances- 
tral souls,  forming  with  them  the  collective  deity  of 
the  family.  Starting  with  this  notion  they  w^ere  led, 
despite  all  differences  of  race,  time,  and  locality,  to 
precisely  the  same  conclusions  which  other  races  had 
drawn  independently,  from  precisely  identical  premises. 

The  one  chief  duty,  to  which  all  others  are  subor- 
dinate, is  to  insure  the  peace  and  happiness  of  the 
shades  in  the  life  beyond.  The  grave  thus  assumes 
a  sacred  character  and  can  be  violated  by  no  one  with 
impunity.  The  head  of  the  family  is  bound  to  see  to 
its  upkeep  and  to  make  the  ceremonial  offerings  to 
the  manes,  which  are  semi-material  ancestral  souls. 
By  his  hearth  are  the  lares,  also  emanations  from  the 
ancestral  souls,  which  perhaps  took  refuge  in  the 
family  statues  with  which  the  patricians  decorated 
their  houses,  much  in  the  same  way  as  did  the  Chinese 
hum  in  their  sepulchral  tablets. 

To  them  also  he  must  offer  the  first  fruits  of  the 
banquet  and  the  garden,  which  must  be  laid  upon  the 
acerra,  or  consecrated  altar,  and  thus  the  family  may 
be  sure  of  the  protection  of  its  defunct  members,  who 
are  always  present  among  them.  The  head  of  the 
family,  by  virtue  of  his  office  of  "  King  of  the  sacri- 
fices," enjoys  sovereign  authority  among  his  own, 
and  this  was  expressed  in  the  name  pater,  which  only 
later  became  restricted  to  the  meaning  of  father. 
If,  however,  he  could  inflict  punishment  at  discretion 


THE  ROMANS  129 

upon  all  the  members  of  his  family,  whom  he  was 
empowered  even  to  kill,  he  was  bound,  on  the  other 
hand,  to  insure  the  continuity  of  the  sacrifices  by 
leaving  as  his  successor  a  male  child  either  of  his  own 
blood  or  his  by  adoption. 

A  family  which  became  extinct  involved  the  cessa- 
tion of  worship  and  the  misery  of  the  ancestral  souls, 
thenceforth  deprived  of  the  ofiferings  which  served 
to  support  them  in  the  life  beyond.  All  kinds  of  legal 
measures  were  aimed  at  preventing  such  a  misfortune 
or  at  hindering  the  admission  into  the  family  of  chil- 
dren .who  might  prove  unworthy,  and  we  find,  at  this 
early  period  the  same  family  institutions  which  the 
Chinese  have  preserved  to  the  present  day.  Celibacy 
was  rigorously  prohibited ;  but  on  the  other  hand,  the 
new-born  infant  must  be  recognised  by  the  father  and 
by  him  be  formally  admitted  to  take  its  place  in  the 
family,  after  having  been  presented  to  the  hearth- 
gods.  All  events  which  went  to  carry  on  the  family 
had  to  be  ratified  by  religious  ceremonies,  without 
which  they  would  not  have  been  legally  valid;  and 
to  these  ceremonies  the  tutelary  deities  were  regularly 
summoned. 

In  the  Roman  household,  even  as  nowadays  in 
China,  these  deities  were  present,  albeit  unseen,  at  the 
admission  not  only  of  the  new-born  child  but  also  of 
the  young  bride  who  came  to  take  her  place  at  the 
family  hearth,  in  order  to  perpetuate  their  lineage. 
They  received  the  renunciation  of  the  maiden  who, 
when  about  to  enter  a  new  family,  required  their 
consent  to  leave  them.  Finally,  they  were  always  at 
hand  to  receive  into  their  midst  the  souls  of  such  of 
their  children  as  were  about  to  die. 
.      9 


130  FUTURE  LIFE 

The  family  was  thus  based  in  the  main  upon  reli- 
gious considerations,  and  the  rights  of  its  members 
were  determined  solely  according  to  their  fitness  to 
represent  the  ancestors  at  the  holy  ceremonies.  Male 
children  alone  were  qualified  to  offer  sacrifice  to  the 
gods;  consequently  women  remained  always  minors, 
possessing  no  family  rights,  for  at  the  sacrifices  they 
were  necessarily  represented  by  a  male  relation.  They 
likewise  conferred  no  title  upon  their  descendants, 
and  in  early  Roman  law,  inheritances  were  trans- 
mitted only  to  agnati,  or  relations  on  the  male  side, 
and  not  to  cognati,  or  relations  on  the  female  side. 
The  latter,  not  possessing  the  same  gods,  could  not  be 
united  in  the  same  grave.  The  internal  organisation 
of  the  family  passed  to  the  city  itself,  as  has  been 
well  shown  by  Fustel  de  Coulanges.  Families  that 
had  descended  from  a  common  ancestor,  whom  they 
met  to  worship  upon  certain  holy  days,  combined  to 
form  the  gens;  and  the  union  of  several  gentes  later 
constituted  the  city,  which  in  some  way  absorbed  into 
its  constitution  the  ancestors  of  them  all. 

Political  power  in  the  city  fell  to  the  heads  of  the 
patrician  families,  who  alone  possessed  gods  to  wor- 
ship. The  plebeians,  who  had  no  family  gods,  were 
inevitably  excluded;  and  it  was  only  after  they  had 
succeeded  in  establishing  a  relationship  with  the  pub- 
lic gods,  that  they  could  participate  in  the  government 
of  the  city. 

The  earth  of  the  hearth  and  the  soil  of  the  grave 
were  inalienable,  and  could  not  be  renounced  by  the 
head  of  the  family  without  sacrilege.  In  like  manner, 
the  city  was  bound  to  preserve  intact  the  place  as- 
signed to  its  gods,  and  if  a  catastrophe  compelled  the 


THE  ROMANS  131 

citizens  to  emigrate,  they  were  bound  to  preserve  their 
national  gods  in  their  midst;  and  this  was  done  by 
carrying  with  them  the  holy  stone  and  fire  of  the 
hearth,  and  a  sod  of  the  native  earth,  so  that  there 
should  be  no  interruption  of  sacrifice.  This  was  what 
engaged  the  principal  attention  of  ^Eneas  as  he  left 
the  smoking  remains  of  the  city  of  Troy.  The  city 
gods  were  always  bound  up  with  the  varying  fortunes 
of  the  city;  they  took  their  part  in  its  wars  and  also 
in  the  treaties  which  put  an  end  to  hostilities.  Usually 
it  was  stipulated  that  the  citizens  of  either  contracting 
party  should  have  the  right  of  invoking  the  gods  of 
the  other  city  together  with  their  own,  and  Rome 
never  omitted  to  carry  off  and  place  in  her  own  temples 
emblems  of  the  gods  of  the  conquered  cities. 

This  rapid  survey  of  ancient  institutions  shows  us 
how  the  same  religious  considerations  that  had  orig- 
inally determined  the  organisation  of  the  family 
spread  by  degrees  to  the  city  as  well;  and  thus  we 
come  to  grasp  the  paramount  influence  exercised  by 
the  idea  of  immortality  upon  the  whole  of  antiquity. 

We  have  just  seen  how  the  founders  of  ancient 
Rome  were  influenced  by  the  idea  of  survival.  Inde- 
pendently we  know  that  the  first  inhabitants  of  Latium 
also  held  this  belief.  Recent  archaeological  discov- 
eries carried  out  in  the  valley  of  Castel  d^Anio  near 
Viterbo  have  disclosed  the  fact  that  the  Etruscans 
excavated  underground  sepulchral  chambers,  the  ar- 
rangement of  which  is  almost  indistinguishable  from 
that  of  the  Medinet- About  tombs  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Thebes.  It  is  therefore  permissible  to  think  that 
they  must  have  been  acquainted  with  the  Egyptian 


132  FUTURE  LIFE 

doctrine  regarding  the  nature  of  man.  Moreover,  we 
are  told  by  Cato  that  the  Etruscans  admitted  the 
immortahty  of  the  soul,  and  Cicero  also  quotes  them 
in  support  of  the  theory  that  primitive  peoples,  being 
less  remote  from  the  beginnings  of  things,  and  receiv- 
ing direct  inspiration  from  the  gods,  possessed  also 
a  better  acquaintance  with  truth.  It  was  originally, 
says  Cicero,  the  universal  belief  of  mankind  that  death 
does  not  destroy  a  man  entirely.^  Elsewhere,  in  the 
often-quoted  passage  from  the  seventeenth  chapter 
of  '*  Scipio's  Dream,"  Cicero  explicitly  states  his  belief 
in  immortality. 

"  Know,"  he  says,  "  that  it  is  not  thou,  but  thy  body 
alone  which  is  mortal.  The  individual  in  his  entirety 
resides  in  the  soul,  and  not  in  the  outward  form. 
Learn,  then,  that  thou  art  a  god ;  thou,  the  immortal 
intelligence  which  gives  movement  to  a  perishable 
body,  just  as  the  eternal  God  animates  an  incorruptible 
body." 

Lactantius  enables  us  to  refer  to  the  affirmations  of 
certain  pagan  oracles  and  of  the  sihyllcB  in  favour  of 
immortality.  It  cannot  be  disguised,  however,  that, 
especially  under  the  Republic,  the  Romans  never  set 
store  by  the  idea  of  personal  survival,  as  did  the  Gauls 
for  instance,  and  few  of  them  endeavoured  to  rise 
above  the  traditional  belief  of  primitive  races,  which 
blended  all  the  souls  of  ancestors  into  a  kind  of  collec- 
tive being  constituting  the  family  type. 

Doubtless  Roman  philosophers  did  also  have 
glimpses  of  the  notion  of  conscious  immortality. 
But  to  them  it  was  a  matter  for  dubious  discussions, 
or  a  desire  tinged  with  regret,  rather  than  an  actual 

1  Tusc.  Disp.  i.  cap.  12. 


THE  ROMANS  133 

truth.  Lucretius  will  have  none  of  it ;  but  the  energy 
which  he  displayed  in  combating  the  idea  is  rather 
an  indication  that  it  still  possessed  considerable  vital- 
ity in  the  minds  of  his  contemporaries.  "  The  fear 
of  eternal  life,"  he  says,  "  should  be  banished  from 
the  universe ;  it  troubles  the  peace  of  mankind,  for  it 
prevents  the  enjoyment  of  any  security  or  pleasure."  ^ 

Later,  his  disciple  Virgil,  in  the  "Georgics,"  envied 
the  happy  lot  of  that  bold  philosopher  who  saw  the 
ultimate  cause  of  things,  and  was  able  to  overcome  the 
bugbear  fear  of  a  world  beyond,  and  to  stifle  the  im- 
aginary rumblings  of  Acheron. 

It  is  known  how  generally  superstitious  the  Romans 
were.  They  were  ceaselessly  kept  on  the  tenter-hooks 
of  anxiety  to  please  occult  powers  and  unseen  genii, 
whose  will  they  sought  to  know  by  augury;  and  one 
can  understand  how  Lucretius,  in  wishing  to  trample 
upon  such  superstition,  came  to  reject  the  notion  of 
immortality  altogether.  He  did  not,  however,  succeed 
in  removing  so  time-honoured  a  tradition  from  the 
mind  of  his  fellow-countrymen,  and  we  know  that 
the  Romans  never  lost  faith  in  a  certain  species  of 
survival,  limited  to  the  grave  and  the  neighbourhood 
of  the  dead  remains. 

That  is  what  Cicero  meant  when  he  wrote :  "  Sub- 
terra  censebant  reliquam  vitam  agi  mortuorum." 
Virgil,  too,  describes  the  shade  of  Dido  passing  be- 
neath the  earth.  In  another  passage  also  he  speaks 
of  Mezentius,  who,  when  about  to  fall  beneath  the 
blows  of  ^neas,  asked  as  a  final  boon  that  he  might 
be  placed  in  the  grave  by  the  side  of  his  son.^  The 
Romans  were  constantly  obsessed  by  the  thought  of 

1  De  Rerum  Nat.,  lib.  i.  ^  ^neid,  x.  896-906. 


134  FUTURE  LIFE 

I  burial, .  even  until  the  rise  of  Christianity ;  and 
I  St.  Augustine,  when  writing  his  "  City  of  God " 
i  (end  of  the  fourth  century,  a.  d.),  made  a  point  of 
,  showing  that  deprivation  of  sepulture  need  not  dis- 
turb believers. 

That  the  idea  of  immortality  was  constantly  present 
in  the  Roman  mind  during  the  last  years  of  the  Re- 
public we  have  proof  in  the  frequency  of  ceremonies/ 
to  summon  up  the  dead.  Cicero  tells  us  the  story  of 
his  client  Vatinius,  who  did  not  scruple  to  sacrifice 
children  in  order  to  obtain  communication  with  the 
shades;  and  we  meet  with  numberless  examples  of 
spirit-raising  among  the  works  of  the  Latin  poets 
contemporary  with  the  great  orator. 

The  pious  hero  of  the  ^neid  calls  up  the  soul  of 
Creusa.  In  Lucan's  poem  Sextus  Pompeius  evokes 
the  soul  of  a  Roman  soldier  who  died  before  the  battle 
of  Pharsalus.^  In  Silvius  Italicus,  Scipio  Africanus 
causes  his  uncles  to  appear  before  him,  and  they  are 
like  empty  shadows,  of  which  he  cannot  take  hold. 

The  Roman  authors  admit,  moreover,  that  death 
sets  free  from  the  physical  body  some  immaterial  ele- 
ment, which  they  do  not,  however,  attempt  to  define 
precisely.  Lucretius  himself  speaks  of  this  element 
escaping  from  all  the  pores  of  the  body.  He  calls  it 
the  animus,  the  breath  by  which  will-power  is  propa- 
gated. The  will-power  resides  in  the  breast  and  acts 
upon  the  various  organs  through  the  intermediary  of 
a  subtle  fluid  which  he  terms  anima. 

Later,  Pliny  the  Younger,  when  discussing  the  ma-  ^ 
terial  existence  of  phantoms,  seems  to  incline  toward '^^ 
the  affirmative.     Ovid,  who  must  have  been,  at  least 

1  iEneid,  vi.  580-830. 


THE  ROMANS  135 

partially,  acquainted  with  ancient  doctrine  on  the  sub- 
ject, clearly  distinguishes  several  elements  in  man: 

"  Terra  tegit  carnem,  tumulum  circumvolat  umbra; 
Orcus  habet  manes,  spiritus  astra  petit." 

Earth  covers  the  flesh,  the  shade  flutters  about  the 
tomb ;  Orcus  holds  the  manes,  and  the  spirit  rises  to 
the  stars. 

Elsewhere  Ovid  asserts  the  immortality  of  the  spir- 
itual principle  in  so  many  words,  and  espouses  the 
doctrine  of  metempsychosis,  which  appears  to  him 
to  be  a  necessary  conclusion  to  be  drawn,  as  indeed 
the  ancients  had  thought,  from  the  spectacle  of  con- 
stant transformation  presented  to  us  by  nature.  ^ 

"  Nothing  perishes,"  he  says,  "  everything  changes' 
here  upon  earth;  the  souls  come  and  go  unendingly 
in  visible  forms;  the  animals  which  have  acquired 
goodness  will  take  upon  them  human  form."  Later, 
when  describing  the  successive  lives  of  Pythagoras, 
he  recurs  to  the  doctrine  of  the  transmigration  of 
souls : 

"  Morte  carent  animae,  semperque  priore  relicta 
Sede,  novis  domibus  habitant,  vivuntque  receptae." 

Virgil,  the  disciple  of  Lucretius,  who  in  his  "  Geor- 
gics  "  sets  the  fear  of  death  at  defiance,  as  we  noticed 
above,  again  takes  up  the  doctrine  of  survival  in  the 
^neid.  We  there  see  Anchises  teaching  it  to  his  son 
^neas,  together  with  the  details  of  the  new  birth. 
"  After  death,"  he  says,  "  the  souls  come  to  the  Ely- 
sian  fields  or  to  Tartarus,  and  there  meet  with  the 
reward  or  punishment  of  their  deeds  during  life. 
Later,  after  drinking  of  the  waters  of  Lethe,  which 


136  FUTURE  LIFE 

takes  away  all  memory  of  the  past,  they  return  to 
earth." 

We  can  here  immediately  recognise  the  influence 
of  the  great  primitive  doctrines  reasserting  themselves 
in  the  Imperial  City  at  the  moment  when  it  had  become 
mistress  of  the  world.  The  city  had  taken  into  her 
midst  representatives  of  all  the  conquered  countries, 
and  through  them  had  come  to  know  the  teaching  of 
ancient  wisdom  under  many  and  often  contradictory 
garbs.  But,  in  the  stern  faith  of  Chaldeans  and 
Gauls,  in  the  supreme  majesty  of  the  God  of  Israel, 
in  the  mysterious  dogmas  of  old  Egypt,  in  the  veiled 
symbolism  of  the  worship  of  Isis,  in  the  bloody  sacri- 
fices of  the  cult  of  Bel  and  Ashtaroth,  in  the  delicate 
legends  of  the  Greeks,  in  the  Mysteries  of  Demeter 
and  Dionysus,  Rome  might  read  that  same  persistent 
affirmation  which  we  have  discovered  in  our  study 
of  ancient  civilisations;  she  might  gain  conviction 
of  the  resurrection,  and  the  powerlessness  of  death  to 
annihilate  man.  Thus,  as  we  remarked,  Rome  was 
admirably  prepared  to  receive  and  propagate  the 
doctrine  of  individual  personal  immortality,  which 
Christianity  was  to  bring  into  the  world. 

Already   Seneca  was   teaching  that   death  is  the 
necessary  road  by  which  we  pass  to  life  eternal,  and  in 
the  second  century  Celsus  could  write,  in  a  discussion 
with   Origen,  that  belief  in  a   future  life  was  not  '; 
peculiar  to  Christians,  but  was  common  to  them  with  | 
the  whole  world. 


CHAPTER   XII 

CHRISTIANITY 

Immortality  brought  to  Light  in  the  New  Testament.  —  Christ's  Teach- 
ings on  Heaven,  Hell,  the  Resurrection,  and  the  Last  Judgment. — 
Divergences  of  Opinion  regarding  the  Interpretation  of  the  Resur- 
rection and  the  Judgment.  —  Immortality  proved  by  the  Raising  of 
the  Dead,  by  Christ's  Statements,  and  by  Paul's  Argument. — The 
Glorified  Body  of  Christ  a  Pledge  of  the  Resurrection  Body  of 
Christians.  —  The  Influence  of  Science  in  modifying  Theological 
Views  of  the  Resurrection. — Constitution  of  the  Soul.  —  Theory 
that  the  Glorified  Body  exists  now  in  the  Physical  Body.  —  This 
Fluid-like  Body  and  Preexistence  both  disregarded  in  Traditional 
Doctrine.  —  Declaration  by  the  Councils  of  Constantinople  and 
Chalcedon  that  Human  Destinies  are  fixed  for  ever  at  Death. — 
The  Notion  of  Preexistence  not  condemned  in  the  Gospels. — 
Hints  of  it  in  the  Cases  of  John  the  Baptist,  the  Man  that  was  born 
Blind,  and  Nicodemus.  —  Believed  in  by  Origen  and  St.  Augustine. 
—  The  Last  Judgment  accepted  in  the  Religion  and  Philosophy  of 
the  Principal  Civilisations  and  in  Christianity.  —  Opinions  regard- 
ing it  held  by  St.  Ambrose  and  St.  Augustine.  —  Premonitory  Signs 
of  the  Judgment.  —  The  Judgment  itself.  —  Modification  of  the 
Popular  Idea  of  Hell  in  Times  of  Origen,  St.  Gregory,  and  St. 
Augustine.  —  Dante's  "Inferno."  —  Man's  Inability  to  conceive 
the  Joys  of  Heaven.  —  The  Legend  of  Alfin,  the  Monk  of  Olmutz.  — 
Degrees  of  Glory  in  Heaven.  —  Possibility  of  Forgiveness  after 
Death.  —  Gradual  Rise  of  the  Notion  of  Purgatory.  —  Decision  of 
the  Council  of  Trent.  —  Necessity  of  the  Doctrine  for  the  Comfort 
of  Christians.  —  Sale  of  Indulgences  the  Chief  Cause  of  the  Refor- 
mation. —  Purgatory  a  Felt  Want  in  Protestant  Churches.  —  Con- 
ditional Immortality. 

IF  the  notion  of  a  future  life  lacks  precision  in 
the  Old  Testament,  it  is  affirmed  with  full  dis- 
tinctness in  the  New.  All  the  promises  and 
threats  which  the  Bible  had  up  till  now  pronounced, 
chiefly  as  affecting  life  on  earth,  were  henceforth 


138  FUTURE  LIFE 

extended  so  as  to  embrace  also  the  existence  beyond 
the  grave.  All  rewards  and  punishments  were  hence- 
forward to  be  sought  in  the  conscious  immortality 
awaiting  man  beyond  the  tomb,  and  this  new  con- 
ception forms  the  final  step  in  the  evolution  of 
doctrine.  Albeit  it  was  not  unknown  to  ancient  reli- 
gions, it  had  as  a  rule  been  regarded  only  as  pure 
theory,  whereas  the  Christian  dogma  made  of  it  a 
living  and  very  cogent  reality.  To  Christian  dogma 
is  due,  so  to  speak,  the  awakening  of  the  human 
conscience,  for  it  showed  that  the  soul  of  the  right- 
eous cannot  remain  satisfied  with  mere  superficial  for- 
malism, but  that  thought  itself  is  an  act  which  would 
have  to  be  answered  for  in  the  presence  of  that  im- 
partial Judge  whose  eye  penetrates  the  most  hidden 
corners  of  the  conscience. 

The  fundamental  idea  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  is 
that  He  comes  in  the  name  of  the  Father  to  bring 
salvation  and  life  to  such  as  believe  in  Him.  But 
His  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world;  His  disciples  must 
on  the  contrary  suffer  upon  earth  for  His  sake,  with 
the  knowledge  that  their  virtues  will  be  rewarded 
hereafter  in  paradise.  The  righteous  thus  redeemed 
by  the  sacrifice  of  the  Saviour  will  gain  a  life  of 
blessedness;  sinners  will  be  cast  away  like  the  use- 
less branches  of  the  barren  fig-tree,  and  thrown  into 
perpetual  fire.  The  antithesis  between  these  two 
opposite  eternities  rests  upon  the  most  precise  affirma- 
tions, which  constantly  recur  in  the  text  of  the  Gos- 
pels; namely,  that  of  the  resurrection  to  eternal  life, 
and  that  of  the  last  judgment.  The  resurrection 
applies  to  man  in  his  entirety,  who  will  rise  again 
with  his  physical  body,  albeit  transfigured,  for  there 


CHRISTIANITY  139 

will  be  neither  distinction  of  sex  nor  material  wants. 
The  body  of  the  righteous  will  become  purely  subtle, 
and  will  henceforth  lead  a  spiritual  life  contemplat- 
ing the  divine  perfections. 

"  For  in  the  resurrection  they  shall  neither  marry 
nor  be  married,  but  shall  be  as  the  angels  of  God  in 
heaven."  ^ 

This  resurrection  will  take  place  simultaneously 
with  the  judgment  and  will  mark  the  end  of  time. 
The  angels  will  blow  upon  their  trumpets  at  the  four 
corners  of  the  earth,  and  will  loose  the  cataclysms 
precursory  of  the  destruction  of  the  universe.  At 
their  summons  the  dead  will  arise  from  their  graves 
to  appear  before  the  Son  of  God,  who  will  come  to 
judge  in  all  the  majesty  of  His  power  and  glory. 
And  He  will  set  the  righteous  upon  His  right  hand, 
and  afterwards  will  bring  them  into  His  heaven  of 
felicity;  and  the  reprobate  He  will  set  upon  His  left 
hand  and  will  cast  them  into  the  everlasting  flames 
of  hell,  where  there  shall  be  tears  and  gnashing  of 
teeth. 

And  He  will  say  to  those  on  His  right  hand: 
"  Come,  ye  blessed  of  my  Father,  possess  you  the 
kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of 
the  world  " ;  and  unto  them  on  the  left  hand :  "  De- 
part from  me,  you  cursed,  into  everlasting  fire."  ^ 

The  resurrection  of  the  dead,  and  the  last  judgment 
preceding  an  eternity  of  felicity  or  suffering,  des- 
tined to  reward  each  man  according  to  his  works, 
are  the  fundamental  dogmas,  so  to  speak,  epitomis- 
ing the  teaching  of  Christ  with  regard  to  the  life 
to  come.     As  they  rest,  however,   upon  a  general 

1  Matt.  xxii.  30.  2  Matt.  xxv.  34,  41. 


140  FUTURE  LIFE 

principle  and  do  not  enter  into  the  details  of  its 
application,  it  may  be  easily  understood  that  their 
interpretation  should  have  led  to  divergences  of 
opinion  which  are  still  under  dispute  among  the 
Christian  churches.  These  differences  of  belief  were 
already  visible  in  the  early  days  of  Christianity;  for 
Christian  eschatology  did  not  at  once  assume  its  de- 
finitive form,  and  during  the  first  centuries  of  the 
Church  certain  theologians  professed,  with  regard 
to  the  nature  of  the  soul  and  the  plurality  of  exist- 
ences, theories  analogous  to  those  entertained  by  the 
initiated  of  antiquity. 

In  proportion,  however,  as  the  new  religion  gained 
authority,  these  theories  gradually  lost  theirs,  and 
when  toward  the  fourth  century  doctrines  upon 
these  points  grew  more  defined,  Christianity  adopted 
the  least  complicated  view,  which  considers  the  im- 
material portion  of  man  as  forming  an  indivisible 
element,  created  specially  with  a  view  to  the  present 
existence.  At  the  same  time  the  world  was  regarded 
as  being  the  centre  of  the  universe,  and  no  heed 
was  given  to  the  knowledge  possessed  by  the  great 
religions  concerning  these  fundamental  problems. 

Among  the  traditions  thus  set  aside,  some  were 
formally  condemned,  others  were  merely  abandoned, 
and  can  thus  be  revived,  should  scientific  observation 
require  it.  We  are  about  to  give  a  rapid  outline  of 
what  is  usually  taught  concerning  the  doctrine  of 
the  four  main  points  of  eschatology,  namely,  the 
resurrection  of  the  body,  the  constitution  of  the  hu- 
man soul,  the  last  judgment,  and  the  life  eternal.  In 
each  case  we  shall  mention  the  divergent  interpre- 
tations to  which  it  has  been  subjected. 


CHRISTIANITY  141 

After  the  Master  had  left  them  and  had  ascended 
into  heaven,  the  Apostles  were  scattered  over  the 
world  to  preach  His  gospel,  and  in  doing  so  they 
insisted  most  of  all  upon  the  dogma  of  resurrection; 
they  showed  that  Christ  had  issued  from  the  tomb, 
triumphing  over  death  through  His  own  power ;  that 
during  His  sojourn  upon  earth  He  had  brought  back 
to  life  several  children  of  men,  such  as  Lazarus  and 
the  son  of  the  widow  of  Nain,  thus  giving  visible 
proof  of  the  immortality  of  man.  Christ,  indeed,  i 
said:  ''I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life;  he  that 
believeth  in  me,  although  he  be  dead,  shall  live;  and', 
every  one  that  liveth  and  believeth  in  me  shall  not 
die  for  ever."  ^ 

When  St.  Paul  came  to  Athens  and  expounded 
the  Christian  dogma  before  the  Areopagus,  he  in- 
stanced the  resurrection  of  Christ  as  affording  indu- 
bitable proof  of  His  divine  mission ;  ^  and  elsewhere 
also  he  uses  this  fundamental  miracle  as  an  argu- 
ment to  show  that  we  all  are  to  triumph  over  death, 
even  as  Christ :  "  Now  if  Christ  be  preached  that 
he  arose  again  from  the  dead,  how  do  some  among 
you  say  that  there  is  no  resurrection  of  the  dead?  "  ^ 
"  And  we  will  not  have  you  ignorant,  brethren,  con- 
cerning them  that  are  asleep,  that  you  be  not  sorrow- 
ful, even  as  others  who  have  no  hope.  For  if  we 
believe  that  Jesus  died  and  rose  again,  even  so  them 
who  have  slept  through  Jesus  will  God  bring  with 
him.  Wherefore,  comfort  ye  one  another  with  these 
words."  ^  "  So  also  is  the  resurrection  of  the 
dead.     It  is  sown  in  corruption,   and  it  shall  rise 

1  John  xi.  25,  26.  2  Acts  xvii.  31,  32. 

8  I  Cor.  XV.  12.  *  I  Thess.  iv.  12,  13,  17. 


142  FUTURE  LIFE 

in  incorruption.  ...  It  shall  rise  in  glory.  ...  It 
shall  rise  a  spiritual  body."  ^ 

In  the  eyes  of  the  faithful  the  resurrection  of 
Christ  constitutes  the  essential  and  decisive  miracle 
among  all;  it  is  the  foundation  of  faith  in  this  life, 
and  the  substance  of  their  hopes  in  the  life  to  come. 
The  body  of  glory  in  which  Christ  appeared  at  His 
resurrection  furnishes  us  with  some  idea  of  the  trans- 
figuration which  awaits  the  bodies  of  the  righteous, 
when,  at  the  end  of  time,  they  shall  be  raised  by 
the  divine  power  of  the  Master.  Doubtless  they 
will  be  freed,  even  as  He  was,  from  the  bondage  of 
matter;  will  be  able  to  defy  gravity,  pass  through 
obstacles,  radiate  through  opaque  substances,  be- 
come invisible,  and  assume  or  divest  themselves  at 
will  of  the  material  form  with  which  Christ  was 
clothed  to  the  bodily  eyes  of  His  apostles.  All 
these  features  of  the  life  of  Christ  as  related  in 
the  Gospels,  aid  us  in  representing  to  ourselves  more 
clearly  than  we  should  otherwise  be  able  to  do  the 
condition  which  awaits  the  glorified  body  in  its  new 
existence. 

Despite  the  transfiguration  which  is  to  modify  so 
profoundly  the  physical  body,  the  resurrection  is 
almost  invariably  understood  even  nowadays  just  as 
it  was  by  Job.  "  In  my  flesh  I  shall  see  my  God,"  ^ 
he  says;  and  the  vast  majority  of  Christians  still 
wonder  at  a  resurrection  which  shall  result  in  the 
reassembling  of  the  very  molecules  which  constituted 
the  body  during  life. 

So  literal  an  interpretation  must  of  necessity  be 
rejected,  now  that  scientific  discoveries  have  proved, 

1  I  Cor.  XV.  42-44.  2  Job  xix.  26. 


CHRISTIANITY  143 

as  we  shall  see,  that  resurrection  of  such  a  kind 
would  be  contrary  to  real  fact.  Most  theologians  no 
longer  hesitate  to  admit  that  all  we  need  recognise  is 
the  identity  of  the  immaterial  principle  by  which  the 
life  of  the  body  is  maintained,  and  from  which  it 
derives  its  particular  form;  that  principle  is  not  to 
be  sought  in  the  individual  molecules  constituting  the 
body.  St.  Thomas,  it  should  be  noticed,  already  had 
such  an  explanation  in  view  when  he  compared  the 
identity  of  the  body  with  that  of  a  state  composed 
of  citizens  of  different  ranks,  each  performing  his 
own  peculiar  function.  The  individuals  change,  and 
others  take  their  place,  but  the  various  classes  of 
citizens  are  always  represented,  and  the  various  func- 
tions are  always  performed.  We  shall  recur  to  this 
point  when  we  come  to  examine  the  notion  of  a  life 
to  come,  in  the  light  of  present  knowledge ;  but  it  is 
interesting  to  bring  out  thus  early  the  influence  which 
science  has  had  upon  the  interpretation  of  traditional 
dogma;  we  shall  see,  moreover,  that  this  example  is 
but  one  of  many. 

The  soul  of  man  is  immortal,  immaterial,  and  in- 
corruptible; and  doctrine  considers  it  as  constituting 
an  immutable  and  indivisible  entity,  but  does  not  go 
into  any  discussion  as  to  whether  that  entity  embraces 
at  once  all  the  various  faculties  embraced  by  the  soul, 
or  whether  we  are  not  right  in  connecting,  as  did 
antiquity,  those  faculties  with  intermediary  elements 
susceptible  of  certain  physical  modifications  during 
life. 

This  more  complex  conception  has  been  tacitly 
thrust    aside   without    ever    having   been    explicitly 


144  FUTURE  LIFE 

condemned.  It  cannot,  however,  be  denied  that  it 
is  in  some  degree  substantiated  by  the  idea  of  a 
glorified  body  such  as  we  have  had  occasion  to 
notice.  If,  according  to  traditional  dogma,  the  glo- 
rified body  is  at  the  end  of  time  to  reveal  itself  in 
its  normal  manifestation,  it  is  perhaps  not  over  bold 
to  suppose  that  it  already  forms  the  fluid-like  en- 
velope of  the  discarnate  soul  in  the  life  beyond  the 
grave,  and  that  it  therefore  must  exist,  in  embryo  at 
least,  in  the  physical  body  which  it  leaves  at  death 
in  company  with  the  soul.  It  is  this  alone  which 
can  account  for  certain  manifestations,  —  exceptional 
doubtless,  yet  uncontested,  —  such  as  apparitions  and 
the  phenomena  of  bilocation,  of  which  we  find  ex- 
amples in  the  lives  of  the  saints  and  in  historical 
annals,  and  to  which  not  only  the  dead  but  also  the 
living  have  given  rise.  It  is  quite  permissible  to  ask 
whether  we  do  not  here  come  into  contact  with  the 
fluid-like  body  which  antiquity  imagined  to  form 
the  necessary  link  between  the  immaterial  soul  and 
the  physical  body,  the  inevitable  envelope  of  the  soul 
in  the  life  beyond  the  grave. 

Whatever  may  be  the  case,  traditional  doctrine  did 
not  think  it  necessary  to  retain  explicitly  the  notion 
of  a  fluid-like  body,  and  perhaps,  in  the  desire  to 
be  as  simple  as  possible,  it  confined  itself  to  distin- 
guishing two  opposed  elements,  namely,  matter  and 
spirit,  the  combination  of  which  constitutes  the  living 
human  being.  It  was  the  same  desire  for  simplicity 
that  led  to  the  rejection  of  the  idea  of  preexist- 
ence  or  reincarnation.  It  was  thought,  as  we  are 
told  by  St.  Methodus  and  St.  Epiphanes  (fourth 
century),  that  such  an  idea  was  only  with  difficulty 


CHRISTIANITY  145 

reconcilable  with  the  idea  of  a  resurrection  of  the 
flesh,  —  that  is,  of  the  identical  body. 

Although  it  was  the  general  belief  at  that  time,  it 
would  have  been  necessary  to  admit  that  the  resur- 
rection did  not  apply  to  the  carnal  body,  taken  at 
some  determinate  moment  of  its  existence,  but  on 
the  contrary,  applied  to  the  substantial  principle  en- 
dowing it  with  form  and  properties,  and  which  will 
rise  again  transfigured  and,  to  use  St.  Augustine's 
phrase,  without  defect  or  deformity. 

Orthodox  doctrine,  on  the  contrary,  fixed  upon  the 
simple  idea  of  souls  being  created  only  at  birth,  and  of 
their  consequently  receiving  direct  from  the  Creator 
those  unequal  faculties  to  which  they  testify  during 
life. 

On  the  death  of  the  physical  body,  they  leave  time 
and  enter  once  more  into  eternity,  and  the  destiny 
of  each  one  of  them  is  fixed  for  ever  beyond  the 
possibility  of  all  modification.  This  conception,  which 
is  an  epitome  of  traditional  dogma,  seems  to  be  dis- 
cernible in  the  decisions  of  the  two  Councils  (Chal- 
cedon  and  Constantinople)  condemning  the  heresy  of 
Origen.  It  has  been  maintained  that  this  condem- 
nation did  not  have  in  view  the  doctrine  of  pre- 
existence  rightly  interpreted,  but  certain  particular 
theories  of  this  great  theologian,  who  adhered  too 
closely  to  the  Gnostic  school,  although  he  had  op- 
posed it  from  other  points  of  view.  He  taught, 
indeed,  that  man  had  primarily  been  created  of 
angelic  nature,  and  that  his  material  incarnation  was 
the  fruit  of  the  original  sin.  It  may  be  remarked 
that  the  notion  of  preexistence  is  several  times  men- 
tioned in  the  Gospels  without  explicit  condemnation. 


146  FUTURE  LIFE 

We  have  already  observed,  in  speaking  of  the  Jews, 
that  this  notion  formed,  at  the  time  of  Christ,  part 
of  the  teaching  of  divers  reHgious  schools ;  we  know, 
moreover,  that,  according  to  a  belief  frequently  ad- 
mitted, the  great  forefathers,  like  Abraham,  Isaac, 
and  Jacob,  and  even  the  most  venerated  among  the 
prophets,  would  one  day  return  to  earth  in  a  new 
incarnation.  Many  of  the  Jews,  in  fact,  did  ask 
whether  Christ  was  not  one  of  those  prophets,  and 
in  St.  Matthew  we  hear  the  question  being  asked  by 
the  disciples  themselves.^ 

Almost  every  one  imagined  that  John  the  Baptist 
was  a  reincarnation  of  Elijah,  and  the  literal  text 
of  the  Gospel  does  not  condemn  the  opinion.  John 
"  is  the  Elias  that  is  to  come."  ^ 

**  But  I  say  to  you  that  Elias  is  already  come,  and 
they  knew  him  not,  but  have  done  unto  him  what- 
soever they  had  a  mind.  So  also  the  Son  of  Man 
shall  suffer  from  them.  Then  the  disciples  under- 
stood that  he  had  spoken  to  them  of  John  the  Bap- 
tist." ^  And  when  Jesus  healed  him  that  was  blind 
from  his  birth,  the  apostles  asked  whether  that  man 
had  not  been  struck  with  blindness  at  his  birth  in 
punishment  for  sins  that  he  had  committed  in  a 
former  life;  and  Christ  simply  rejected  that  explana- 
tion, without  formally  denying  the  principle.^ 

Elsewhere  he  says  to  Nicodemus  that,  in  order  to 
see  the  kingdom  of  God,  man  must  be  born  again.^ 
And  if  this  saying  is  generally  understood  to-day 
to  bear  a  symbolical  meaning,  it  is  none  the  less 
possible  to  take  it  in  the  literal  sense. 

1  Matt.  xvi.  14.  2  Matt.  xi.  14. 

*  Matt.  xvii.  12,  13.  *  John  ix.  2,  3. 

*  John  iii.  3. 


CHRISTIANITY  147 

The  perusal  of  the  above  passages  at  once  ex- 
plains the  difficulties  encountered  by  the  early  Chris- 
tians in  deducing  therefrom  a  precise  eschatology, 
such  as  would  be  accepted  by  all;  and  as  a  matter 
of  fact,  early  theologians  put  forward  widely  diver- 
gent opinions  on  the  point.  Lactantius,  who  lived 
at  the  end  of  the  third  century,  opined  that  the  idea 
of  the  soul's  immortality  implied  the  idea  of  pre- 
existence.  The  condemnation  of  the  heresy  of  Origen 
likewise  fell  upon  the  theory  of  reincarnations,  of 
which  he  had  been  the  most  authoritative  upholder. 
We  know,  however,  that  this  latter  idea  long  claimed 
numerous  partisans  among  Christians,  as  is  instanced 
by  the  letter  of  St.  Jerome  to  Demetriades  in  a.  d. 
415.  St.  Augustine,  although  he  opposed  the  doc- 
trines of  Origen,  appears  to  accept  it  when  he  thus 
delivers  himself  in  the  "  Confessions  " :  "  Did  I  not 
live  in  another  body  before  entering  my  mother's 
wombP'^i 

These  divergences  of  opinion,  of  which  we  shall 
encounter  further  examples  when  speaking  of  the 
future  destiny  of  the  human  soul,  demonstrate  that 
Christian  eschatology  is  fixed  only  in  its  main  lines, 
and  that  it  involves  numberless  secondary  questions 
which  have  not  yet  been  definitively  settled.  It  is, 
therefore,  permissible  to  think  that  the  traditional  in- 
terpretation may  still  undergo  modifications  if  neces- 
sary. But  this  is  doubtless  a  question  of  metaphysics 
and  theology,  and  we  shall  not  attempt  to  discuss  it 
from  the  point  of  view  of  science  proper;  but  at 
the  same  time  we  do  not  forget  that  the  appearance 
of  the  astral  body,  when  once  clearly  established,  is 

^  I.  cap.  vi. 


148  FUTURE  LIFE 

of  a  nature  to  lend  a  serious,  if  not  decisive,  argument 
to  the  discussion. 

The  idea  of  a  last  judgment  was  already  admitted 
in  the  doctrines  of  antiquity,  and  was  a  part  at  all 
events  of  the  teaching  imparted  to  the  initiate.  We 
have  seen  it,  in  fact,  in  the  religious  dogmas  and 
philosophical  beliefs  of  the  principal  civilisations 
which  we  have  hitherto  studied.  The  idea  is  again 
taken  up  and  affirmed  with  fresh  energy  in  Christian 
eschatology,  which  views  it  as  the  necessary  reward 
of  the  acts  of  the  present  life.  The  Gospel  distinctly 
tells  us  that  at  the  end  of  time,  as  we  observed  above, 
the  Son  of  Man  shall  again  appear  upon  earth  to 
deliver  that  awful  sentence  which  shall  decide  the 
eternal  destiny  of  every  man,  and  especial  insistence 
is  laid  upon  the  cataclysms  which  shall  herald  his 
coming. 

The  dogma  of  the  last  judgment  formed,  therefore, 
an  integral  portion  of  the  faith  of  the  first  Chris- 
tians ;  but  in  this  case  also,  though  the  principle  was 
accepted  unanimously,  the  details  of  its  application 
gave  birth  to  certain  difficulties.  In  the  first  place, 
it  was  necessary  to  determine  what  should  be  the 
transient  fate  of  the  dead  during  the  time  which 
should  elapse  before  that  dread  day  of  the  beginning 
of  eternity,  when  the  notion  of  time  would  be  de- 
stroyed together  with  the  material  world.  Accord- 
ingly, it  was  laid  down  that  the  dead  soul  would 
be  summoned  to  undergo  an  individual  trial  in  the 
presence  of  God  immediately  after  decease,  —  a  trial 
independent  of  the  last  judgment  of  all  souls  simul- 
taneously.   St.  Paul  tells  us  that  it  is  appointed  unto 


CHRISTIANITY  149 

men  once  to  die,  and  that  death  is  followed  imme- 
diately by  the  judgment  of  God,  who  gives  to  each 
one  according  to  his  works.-^  This  first  appearance 
before  the  Supreme  Judge  determines  once  and  for 
ever  the  eternal  destiny  of  souls,  seeing  that  they  are 
impotent  to  do  anything  in  order  to  modify  it;  all 
that  the  general  judgment  can  therefore  do  is  to 
confirm  a  decision  already  given,  and  to  interrupt 
for  an  instant  the  eternal  bliss  of  the  chosen  or  the 
misery  of  the  reprobate.  The  early  Christians,  how- 
ever, hesitated  to  admit  the  immediate  putting  into 
execution  of  the  sentence;  St.  Ambrose  supposed 
that,  so  long  as  time  endured,  the  souls  would  await 
their  reward  or  chastisement  in  an  intermediate  place 
until  the  day  of  resurrection.  This  opinion  was 
shared  by  St.  Augustine.  These  two  learned  theo- 
logians undoubtedly  supposed  that  heaven  and  hell 
would  receive  man  in  his  entirety  after  the  resurrec- 
tion of  the  body,  and  that  the  necessity  of  appearing 
at  the  last  judgment  could  be  with  difficulty  recon- 
ciled with  the  notion  of  eternal  life,  seeing  that  it 
reintroduced  the  consideration  of  time  which  is  of 
necessity  excluded.  But  this  opinion  did  not  prevail, 
and  the  traditional  Roman  Catholic  dogma  still  as- 
serts that  the  souls  of  the  righteous  are  transported 
to  heaven  as  soon  as  they  have  been  sufficiently 
cleansed  by  a  sojourn  in  purgatory,  whereas  the  souls 
of  the  wicked  are  straightway  hurled  into  hell,  im- 
mediately after  their  individual  judgment.  Purga- 
tory alone  is  destined  to  pass  away  at  the  end  of 
time. 

Apart  from  these  discussions  of  a  metaphysical 
1  Heb.  ix.  27. 


150  FUTURE  LIFE 

character,  upon  which  we  need  not  insist,  the  dogma 
of  the  last  judgment  raises  two  other  questions 
affecting  the  material  world,  which  we  may  with 
profit  approach  from  a  scientific  point  of  view.  We 
shall  at  present  merely  draw  attention  to  them,  re- 
serving their  discussion  for  Part  11.  The  first  is  con- 
cerned with  the  premonitory  signs  announcing  the 
judgment,  which  would  seem  to  show  that  it  will 
mark  the  end,  not  only  of  the  world  we  inhabit,  but 
of  the  entire  universe.  The  Gospel  says  that  the  stars 
will  fall  upon  the  earth,  but  we  know  now  that  our 
globe  is  not  the  centre  of  the  universe;  it  is  but  an 
insignificant  planet  as  compared  with  the  sun  and 
stars,  which  cannot  fall  upon  it;  and  the  catastrophe 
which  might  destroy  it  would  probably  be  a  mere 
secondary  phenomenon,  destined  to  pass  unperceived 
by  the  rest  of  the  universe,  except  perhaps  by  the 
immediately  neighbouring  planets.  Under  these  con- 
ditions there  is  no  reason  to  imagine  that  the  de- 
struction of  the  earth  would  involve  that  of  the 
universe.  Later,  when  speaking  of  astronomical  dis- 
coveries, we  shall  see  what  solution  is  at  present 
proposed  by  apologists. 

Then  comes  the  recall  to  life  of  each  mortal  in- 
scribed in  the  great  books  of  life,  which  shall  be 
laid  open  upon  the  day  of  judgment,  as  is  foretold 
in  the  visions  of  the  Apocalypse. 

"  And  I  saw  the  dead,  great  and  small,  standing 
in  the  presence  of  the  throne,  and  the  books  were 
opened;  .  .  .  and  the  dead  were  judged  by  those 
things  which  were  written  in  the  books." 

The  Church  has  taken  up  this  idea  in  the  moving 
verses  of  the  "  Dies  Irse,"  the  mighty  rhythm  of  which 


CHRISTIANITY  151 

is  resonant  with  the  majesty  of  the  scene  they  depict. 
Moreover  The  Book  of  Wisdom  tells  us  that  the  ear 
of  the  jealous  God  hears  all  things,  and  that  the 
wicked  man  will  be  examined  even  in  his  thoughts. 

In  Part  II  of  this  work  we  shall  seek  to  show  in 
what  measure  science  confirms  this  doctrine,  accord- 
ing to  which  the  divine  contemplation  embraces  at 
once  all  times  and  all  places,  and  how  science  permits 
us  to  conceive  this  grandiose  restoration  of  the  past 
at  the  last  judgment. 

To  the  first  Christians  heaven  and  hell  appeared  as 
very  definite  localities,  somewhat  material  indeed; 
but  this  conception,  perpetuated  down  to  the  present 
in  traditional  dogma,  has  had  to  undergo  alterations 
under  the  influence  of  modern  scientific  ideas.  This 
we  shall  show  later.  Without  founding  one's  ob- 
jections upon  science,  it  might  have  been  advanced 
against  the  physical  character  of  the  punishments  of 
hell  that  they  would  not  affect  the  immaterial  soul, 
and  that  they  could  not  in  consequence  be  of  effect 
during  the  existence  of  the  universe,  but  only  after 
the  resurrection  of  the  body,  which  is  to  coincide 
with  the  end  of  time.  This  reflection  also  occurred 
to  the  Christians  of  the  first  few  centuries,  before 
traditional  dogma  had  become  crystallised;  we  find 
Origen  even  teaching  that  the  fire  of  hell  is  merely 
a  symbol  of  the  torments  that  rend  the  conscience  of 
the  damned. 

St.  Gregory  of  Nazianza  and  St.  Augustine  like- 
wise contest  the  existence  of  a  material  fire,  of  physi- 
cal torments,  and  of  the  consequent  gnashing  of  teeth. 
It  must  be  recollected,   however,  that  as  the  new 


152  FUTURE  LIFE 

religion  progressed  these  objections  were  gradually 
forgotten;  in  the  Middle  Ages  the  imagination  of 
poets  and  preachers  enlarged  freely  upon  the  theme 
of  the  infinite  variety  of  the  material  agonies  of  hell, 
and  they  were  thus  able  to  show  that  the  punish- 
ments could  be  graduated  to  suit  various  degrees  of 
culpability. 

It  does  not  appear  that  people  were  then  struck  as 
we  are  now  by  the  infinite  severity  implied  in  the 
notion  of  punishment  carried  on  unremittently 
throughout  eternity;  they  saw  only  the  inevitable 
application  of  the  laws  of  God's  justice.  For  every 
offence  committed  against  Him  constitutes  in  itself 
an  infinite  sin,  and  the  law  consequently  requires 
infinite  expiation.  The  goodness  of  God  may  have 
suspended  the  punishment  during  earthly  life;  it  is 
unable  to  deliver  the  guilty  altogether. 

In  the  "  Divine  Comedy,"  for  example,  Dante, 
epitomising  the  ideas  of  his  day,  afifirms  the  necessity 
of  eternal  punishment  in  order  to  prevent  the  inevitable 
relapse  of  the  sinner. 

"  Tanto  giu  cadde  che  tutti  argomenti 
Alia  salute  sua  eran  gia  corti, 
Fuor  che  mostrargli  le  perdute  genti."  ^ 

It  may,  however,  be  observed  that  certain  among 
the  early  theologians  taught  that  damnation  is  not  of 
necessity  everlasting;  as  St.  Augustine,  though  bent 
upon  refuting  the  opinion,  allows  that  it  found  numer- 
ous partisans  among  his  contemporaries  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  fifth  century. 

As  a  complete  contrast,  heaven  involves  an  eternal 

1  Purgat.,  Canto  xxx.,  stanza  46. 


CHRISTIANITY  153 

semi-material  bliss,  in  so  far  as  it  affects  the  physical 
body.  St.  Thomas  informs  us,  indeed,  that  in  the 
state  of  beatitude,  the  body,  now  become  immortal, 
is  composed  of  a  luminous  and  subtle  matter,  freed 
from  the  gross  necessities  of  life,  incapable  of  suffer- 
ing, but  sensible  on  the  other  hand  to  all  desirable 
pleasures.  As  to  the  soul,  it  has  its  own  peculiar  joy 
in  the  full  possession  of  truth,  in  the  understanding 
beyond  error  which  will  satisfy  all  its  desires,  and 
above  all,  in  the  contemplation  of  the  divine  perfec- 
tions, which  constitutes  the  supreme  happiness  inclu- 
sive of  all  others.  This  is,  in  fine,  ideal  happiness 
such  as  cannot  be  conceived  during  the  present  life. 
For,  as  says  St.  Paul,  the  eye  cannot  see  it,  the  ear 
cannot  hear  it,  and  the  heart  of  man  cannot  under- 
stand it.  It  is  unhappily  too  true  that  the  human 
imagination,  so  ingenious  in  the  contrivance  of  pain 
and  suffering,  cannot  picture  to  itself  real  happiness. 
Hence  the  apologists  avow  themselves  unable  to  de- 
scribe celestial  felicity;  and  even  those  mystic  saints 
who  during  life  caught  ecstatic  glimpses  of  heaven 
declare  that  the  tongue  of  man  avails  not  to  describe 
inexpressible  felicity.  Years  and  centuries  slip  by 
like  the  fleeting  moment,  and  yet  the  soul  is  never 
weary,  never  even  feels  a  touch  of  that  inevitable 
satiety  which  always  accompanies  terrestrial  happi- 
ness, the  vanity  whereof  it  henceforth  comprehends. 

This  feeling  has  been  strikingly  expressed  in  the 
legend  of  Frater  Alfin,  the  holy  monk  of  Olmutz, 
who  was  always  troubled  by  the  notion  of  satiety  in 
celestial  happiness.  Having  fallen  one  day  asleep 
beneath  a  tree  in  the  forest,  he  was  snatched  in  dream 
to  heaven  and  was  able  to  gaze  upon  its  incomparable 


154  FUTURE  LIFE 

splendour.  On  reawakening,  the  remembrance  of  his 
ecstasy,  the  duration  of  which  had  to  him  appeared 
only  a  few  moments,  cured  him  of  all  anxieties.  But 
he  felt  extremely  astonished  when  he  found  that  he 
had  become  a  complete  stranger  in  his  own  country, 
even  in  his  monastery,  for  the  rapture  of  a  moment 
had  in  reality  lasted  several  centuries.  Then  alone 
was  he  permitted  to  know  that  our  temporal  impres- 
sions are  as  nothing  when  compared  with  eternity. 

If  contemplation  of  the  divine  perfections  consti- 
tutes the  common  bliss  of  the  elect,  it  must  not  be 
forgotten  that  it  is  not  vouchsafed  to  all  in  like 
measure,  for  it  is  to  be  proportioned  according  to 
merit,  so  that  each  man  may  be  rewarded  according 
to  his  works.  Christ  tells  us  indeed  that  there  are 
several  dwellings  in  the  house  of  the  Father,  and  up- 
holders of  the  theory  of  unlimited  progress  toward 
perfection  think  themselves  justified  in  hence  con- 
cluding that  the  elect  even  in  heaven  continue  to 
acquire  fresh  merits,  carrying  them  forward  in  that 
divine  contemplation  which  is  the  source  of  supreme 
happiness.  Be  it  added  that  traditional  dogma  does 
not  favour  such  an  interpretation  and  does  not  admit 
the  possibility  of  the  discarnate  soul  modifying  of 
itself  the  condition  assigned  to  it  after  death,  whatever 
that  may  be.  The  souls  in  heaven  can,  to  be  sure, 
plead  on  behalf  of  living  believers  who  supplicate 
them  so  to  do  in  prayer;  this  privilege  even  belongs 
to  souls  in  purgatory,  for  St.  Theresa  tells  us  that 
she  often  had  recourse  to  their  intercession,  knowing 
that  she  would  thereby  obtain  much  grace.  It  does 
not  appear  that  these  souls,  so  powerful  in  the  cause 
of  others,  can  act  upon  their  own  behalf,  at  least  not 


CHRISTIANITY  155 

according  to  the  most  general  interpretation  of  tra- 
ditional dogma. 

The  Gospel  is  continually  contrasting  heaven  with 
hell,  the  abode  of  the  righteous  with  the  abode  of  the 
wicked,  and  in  expounding  this  dread  alternative  it 
makes  no  express  mention  of  an  intermediate  place 
suitable  for  the  transient  detention  of  such  righteous 
souls  as  leave  the  life  on  earth  without  being  com- 
pletely purged.  It  is  nevertheless  possible  to  adduce 
certain  passages  wherein  Christ  foresees  the  possi- 
bility of  obtaining  remission  of  sins  perhaps  even 
after  death,  seeing  that  He  expressly  declares  that  in 
the  world  to  come,  as  well  as  in  this,  forgiveness  will 
be  refused  to  the  blasphemer,^  which  would  certainly 
imply  that  for  the  righteous  man  incompletely  purified 
there  may  be  a  preliminary  expiation  before  his  en- 
trance into  the  dwelling  of  the  blessed. 

St.  John,  taking  up  the  saying  of  Christ,  delivers 
himself  as  follows :  "  He  that  knoweth  his  brother  to 
sin  a  sin  which  is  not  to  death,  let  him  ask,  and  life 
shall  be  given  to  him  who  sinneth  not  to  death. 
There  is  a  sin  unto  death :  for  that  I  say  not  that  any 
man  ask."  ^ 

The  idea  of  this  transitory  state  leads  to  that  of 
a  corresponding  intermediate  place  of  sojourn.  We 
see,  therefore,  that  St.  Peter,  when  speaking  of  the 
resurrection  of  Christ,  tells  us  that  the  Saviour  passed 
through  hell  without  suffering;  ^  and  this  shows  that 
it  was  no  place  reserved  exclusively  for  the  damned. 
Besides,  we  know  that  the  early  Christians  were  per- 
plexed as  to  the  fate  reserved  for  those  who  had  been 

1  Matt.  xii.  32.  *  I  John  v.  16.  3  Acts  ii.  24. 


166  FUTURE  LIFE 

righteous  according  to  the  Old  Law  and  had  died 
before  the  coming  of  Christ,  and,  thus  being  unable 
to  share  in  his  merits,  were  excluded  from  heaven, 
albeit  they  deserved  to  be  exempted  from  the  pains 
of  eternal  punishment. 

The  Church  was  thus  led  to  admit  that  they  inhab- 
ited a  region  apart,  wherein  they  underwent  no  other 
suffering  than  deprivation  of  the  sight  of  God ;  even 
this  suffering  was  purely  transient  and  would  even- 
tually cease,  owing  to  the  retrospective  effects  of  the 
redemption. 

Christ,  upon  the  day  of  his  resurrection,  had  drawn 
after  him  such  righteous  souls  as  were  then  in  limbo, 
and  for  those  who  had  not  yet  deserved  that  grace, 
recourse  might  be  had,  even  after  death,  to  baptism, 
which  brings  about  the  remission  of  sins.  This  ex- 
plains the  baptism  of  the  dead  as  practised  by  the 
early  Church. 

The  notion  of  purgatory  gradually  arose  out  of  the 
necessity  of  imagining  some  halting-place  in  which 
the  souls  still  incompletely  purged  should  undergo 
the  temporary  penalties  of  sin,  until  such  time  as  they 
should  be  deemed  worthy  to  enter  heaven.  This  doc- 
trine is  laid  down  in  strict  terms  by  the  Council  of 
Trent.  *'  If  any  man  shall  say  that  by  virtue  of 
justification  the  guilt  of  trespass  and  eternal  punish- 
ment are  so  far  remitted  to  the  penitent  that  he  no 
longer  has  any  punishment  to  undergo,  either  in  this 
world  or  in  purgatory  before  entering  the  Kingdom 
of  Heaven,  let  him  be  anathema." 

Purgatory,  thus  introduced  into  traditional  dogma, 
has  happily  softened  all  that  was  excessive  in  the  abso- 
lute contrast  between  heaven  and  hell,  and  it  has  at 


CHRISTIANITY  157 

the  same  time  created  that  communion  of  souls  beyond 
the  grave  which  contributes  such  strength  to  the  Cath- 
olic Church.  Surviving  believers  know  that  the  affec- 
tionate memory  which  they  preserve  toward  those 
whom  they  loved,  the  prayers  which  they  offer  up  for 
them,  and  the  merits  which  they  acquire  in  their  name, 
are  not  lost,  but  contribute  to  their  succour  and  hasten 
the  blessed  time  of  their  admission  into  paradise.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  souls  thus  comforted  can  also  come 
to  the  help  of  believers  yet  upon  earth,  by  suggesting 
to  them  inspirations  and  thoughts  which  lead  them 
into  the  path  of  righteousness. 

Thus  purgatory  appears  as  a  necessary  element  in 
the  coordination  of  the  divine  plan,  and  furnishes  all 
believers  with  the  communion  and  support  requisite 
to  them  in  order  to  earn  eternal  happiness.  It  is  a 
harmonious  union  of  charity,  prayers,  and  sacrifices, 
in  which  the  Church  triumphant  calls  to  her  the 
Church  militant,  and  the  latter  comforts  and  purifies 
the  suffering  Church. 

The  dogma  of  purgatory,  which  now  seems  to  us 
so  necessary,  was  nevertheless  long  neglected.  Chris- 
tians in  ages  past  viewed  it  as  quite  an  exceptional 
solution  without  justifiable  foundation,  whereas  we 
now  look  upon  it  as  the  best  testimony  to  divine  equity. 
Unhappily  it  served  as  pretext  for  the  traffic  in  indul- 
gences which  gave  rise  to  such  innumerable  abuses, 
and  this  was  undoubtedly  the  principal  reason  which 
led  Protestant  reformers  to  renounce  a  dogma  which 
they  did  not  find  categorically  laid  down  in  the  Gos- 
pel. They  are,  therefore,  forced  to  represent  the  soul 
immediately  after  death  as  confronted  with  the  dread- 
ful alternative  of  an  eternity  of  bliss  or  of  misery, 


158  FUTURE  LIFE 

without  thinking  that  thereby  they  condemned  the 
vast  majority  of  mankind  to  the  pains  of  endless  dam- 
ation.  Few  indeed  but  have  allowed  themselves  to 
be  distracted  by  worldly  interests,  few  make  sufficient 
effort  to  win  eternal  happiness.  Their  souls  upon 
arriving  before  the  Sovereign  Judge  are  of  necessity 
cast  into  hell.  Such  a  deduction  appears  to  us  now- 
adays as  inordinately  cruel,  for  the  penalty  inflicted 
seems  out  of  all  proportion  with  the  sin  committed. 
It  may  be  said  to  be  particularly  odious  when  com- 
bined also  with  the  dogma  of  predestination,  for  it 
condemns  to  everlasting  misfortune  from  birth  beings 
which  neither  asked  to  live  nor  are  capable  of  altering 
in  any  way  the  sentence  passed  upon  them  by  a  cruel 
Creator. 

To  be  sure,  so  rigorous  a  conception  of  predestina- 
tion is  not  admitted  by  all  Protestant  churches,  the 
majority  of  which  seek  at  present  to  mitigate  the  ter- 
rible antithesis  of  heaven  and  hell.  Despite  their 
efforts,  they  do  not  succeed  in  finding  a  satisfactory 
substitute  for  purgatory,  and,  as  an  eminent  clergy- 
man has  said,  if  Protestantism  to-day  appears  inca- 
pable of  gaining  converts,  and  if  its  preachings  remain 
in  some  degree  sterile,  it  is  due  in  no  small  part  to 
the  absence  of  purgatory  from  its  doctrine;  whereas 
that  notion  has  furnished  Catholicism  with  the  plas- 
ticity requisite  for  adapting  itself  to  the  successive 
conceptions  of  divine  justice  arrived  at  by  man.  It  is 
this  dogma  which  permits  the  mitigation  of  the  too 
implacable  notion  of  the  ancient  hell  with  all  its  train 
of  everlasting  and  useless  torments,  the  only  object 
of  which  was  to  testify  to  the  power  of  the  Avenging 
Deity.    To  this  is  now  added  a  temporary  hell  which 


CHRISTIANITY  159 

seems  at  once  to  reconcile  the  requirements  of  justice 
with  those  of  divine  mercy,  without  doing  violence 
to  traditionary  dogma. 

Protestantism  is  so  well  aware  of  this  difficulty  that 
a  new  sect  recently  formed  advocates  conditional 
immortality,  a  most  original  intermediate  solution,  the 
result  of  which  is  to  obviate  the  dilemma  which  it 
regards  as  fatal  to  Protestant  activity. 

The  success  with  which  this  doctrine  has  been 
greeted  among  the  Reformed  Churches  would  seem 
to  show  that  it  fulfils  a  real  want  of  the  religious  feel- 
ings of  our  day.  Conditional  immortality  has  brought 
a  new  point  of  view  into  the  discussion  of  the  question 
of  survival,  itself  as  old  as  mankind,  and  is  therefore 
particularly  interesting.  It  is  principally  based  upon 
arguments  of  a  theological  order  rather  than  upon 
scientific  considerations,  and  we  therefore  think  that 
we  are  justified  in  examining  it  here  in  connection 
with  Christian  dogma,  although  it  is  contrary  to 
traditional  doctrine. 


CHAPTER    XIII 

CONDITIONAL    IMMORTALITY    IN    THE    PROTESTANT 
CHURCHES 

Dr.  Edward  White's  "  Conditional  Immortality,  or  Life  in  Christ."  — 
Immortality  not  natural  to  Man,  but  bestowed  on  the  Righteous. 
—  This  Theory  strengthened  by  the  Darwinian  Theory,  and  by 
Drummond's  "  Natural  Law  in  the  Spiritual  World."  —  The  Same 
Line  of  Argument  in  OUifE's  "  Le  Probleme  de  I'Immortalite."  — 
Immortality  for  all  Mankind  implies  the  Same  for  Animals  and 
Plants.  —  Preexistence  from  all  Eternity  a  Necessary  Postulate  for 
Universal  Immortality.  —  The  Immortality  of  the  Righteous  due  to 
the  Merits  of  Christ.  —  The  Survival  of  the  Righteous  in  the  Spirit- 
ual World  compared  to  the  Survival  of  the  Fittest  in  the  Natural 
World.  —  St,  Paul's  References  to  the  Fate  of  the  Wicked  suggest 
Destruction,  and  not  Eternal  Suffering. —  Universal  Immortality  a 
Dogma  of  the  Church  as  early  as  the  Fourth  Century.  —  Christ 
having  suffered  for  All,  All  may  attain.  Immortality. 

THIS  is  a  relatively  recent  theory,  having  been 
for  the  first  time  proposed  by  Dr.  Edward 
White  in  a  book  entitled  **  Conditional  Im- 
mortality, or  Life  in  Christ,"  published  about  1846. 
The  learned  author  endeavours  to  show  that  the  soul 
in  its  essential  nature  is  not  necessarily  immortal,  but 
is  only  susceptible  of  becoming  so.  This  bold  affirma- 
tion he  seeks  to  support  by  the  teaching  of  the  Gospel 
itself.  To  this  end  he  quotes  several  passages  declar- 
ing that  the  wicked  shall  be  destroyed  for  ever,  or 
contrasting  the  death  which  awaits  them  with  the 
life  eternal  reserved  for  the  righteous.  He  there- 
upon proceeds  to  maintain  that  the  words  "  life " 
and  "death,"  so  frequently  occurring  in  the  New 


CONDITIONAL  IMMORTALITY  161 

Testament,  are  to  be  taken  in  their  literal  sense,  and 
he  entirely  rejects  the  metaphorical  meaning  given  to 
them  by  traditional  dogma.  His  conclusion  is  that 
immortality  does  not  appear  in  the  Gospel  as  a  neces- 
sary prerogative  of  the  soul,  but  only  as  a  gift  of 
grace  which  Christ  the  Redeemer  has  come  to  grant 
to  those  who  believe  in  Him  and  desire  to  participate 
in  His  grace. 

To  the  traditional  doctrine  which  bestows  immor- 
tality upon  all  men,  and  which  Dr.  E.  White  thence 
designates  imiversalism,  he  opposes  his  limited  concep- 
tion, conditionalism,  which  views  all  men  destined  in 
principle  to  die,  but  reserves  eternal  life  for  the 
righteous,  who  thus  become  the  sole  survivors  in  the 
struggle  for  existence.  A  theory  so  divergent  from 
orthodox  belief  could  not  fail  to  rouse  opposition, 
and  Dr.  White's  book  was  condemned  from  its  first 
appearance  by  all  Protestant  churches,  although  it 
rested  almost  exclusively  on  the  authority  of  the 
Bible.  However,  as  the  new  idea  spread,  it  gradually 
gained  the  adhesion  of  many  of  the  clergy,  and  was 
widely  taken  up  at  the  time  when  the  Darwinian 
theories  first  appeared,  opinion  transferring  to  man's 
future  life  the  conceptions  which  it  was  already  be- 
ginning to  adopt  with  regard  to  the  present  life 
of  animals.  The  idea  was  championed  by  Henry 
Drummond,  Professor  of  Science  in  the  Free  Church 
College  in  Glasgow,  in  a  work  entitled  "  Natural 
Law  in  the  Spiritual  World"  (1883),  which  caused 
widespread  sensation  throughout  English-speaking 
countries,  and  in  which  the  question  of  survival  is 
discussed  with  the  keenest  interest.  Over  a  hundred 
thousand  copies  were  sold. 


162  FUTURE  LIFE 

The  conditionalist  theory  thus  forced  itself  upon  the 
public  attention  and  was  discussed  by  men  of  every 
way  of  thinking,  —  religious  apologists,  scientists, 
and  philosophers.  A  whole  library  might  be  collected 
from  books  on  the  subject.  Owing  to  this  amount  of 
controversy  the  doctrine  became  so  well  known  as  to 
exact  investigation  by  orthodox  schools.  M.  Sabatier 
affirms  that  it  daily  wins  adherents  amongst  Protes- 
tant clergymen  and  theologians,  and  is  now  allowed 
a  recognised  place  in  the  history  of  Protestant  dogma. 

Conditionalism  starts,  as  we  have  said,  from  the 
idea  that  the  human  soul  is  not  necessarily  immortal, 
and  it  therefore  must  surprise  the  reader  to  find  its 
really  religious  upholders  endeavouring  to  pull  down 
all  the  traditional  arguments  of  philosophers  and 
apologists  in  support  of  immortality  of  whatever 
kind.  This  is  the  line  followed  by  M.  Petavel  Olliff 
in  his  interesting  survey  of  the  doctrine.  His  book 
is  entitled  "  Le  Probleme  de  ITmmortalite."  ^  He 
examined  the  notion  of  immortality  from  an  inde- 
pendent scientific  point  of  view,  and  concludes,  as  does 
Dr.  E.  White,  that  it  is  impossible  to  admit  the  prin- 
ciple of  the  immortality  of  the  human  soul  without 
conferring  the  same  privilege  upon  all  living  creatures. 
For  animals  are  linked  with  man  by  imperceptible 
gradations,  and  some  are  capable  of  personal  feelings 
and  even  of  reasoning,  which  is  not  given  to  all  men 
in  the  same  degree.  So  soon  as  we  take  up  this  line 
of  argument  there  is  no  stopping,  and  we  are  bound 
to  recognise  the  right  even  of  plants  to  immortality. 
The  Darwinian  theory  shows  us  how  the  different 
animal  species  have  developed  continuously  through 

1  Paris,  Fischbacher,  1891. 


CONDITIONAL  IMMORTALITY  163 

the  survival  of  the  fittest,  until  they  have  finally 
culminated  in  man.  Are  we  not  bound  to  admit, 
writes  M.  Petavel  Olliff,  that  this  law  equally  applies 
to  the  invisible  world,  and  that  among  the  children  of 
men,  only  the  most  fitted  will  be  called  upon  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  life  of  those  spiritual  beings  which  exist 
in  a  higher  sphere  than  that  of  man,  and  that  only 
the  most  worthy  will  take  their  place  in  a  new  world 
in  the  midst  of  this  superior  race  and  share  in  its 
everlasting  evolution?  From  the  metaphysical  stand- 
point, continues  M.  Petavel  Olliff,  it  is  alleged  that 
the  soul  is  a  purely  spiritual  substance,  that  it  is  hence 
indivisible,  indissoluble,  and  imperishable.  He  is  of 
opinion,  however  (together  with  Kant),  that  this  is 
not  a  logical  conclusion;  for,  he  says,  if  the  indis- 
soluble spirit  cannot  perish  by  decomposition,  it  can 
none  the  less  perish  by  a  gradual  enfeeblement  result- 
ing from  the  waste  of  vital  power.  In  order  to  vindi- 
cate immortality  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  soul, 
being  of  divine  essence,  is  also  eternal,  as  indeed  does 
Plato,  who  considered  preexistence  as  inseparable 
from  immortality.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  thought 
that  the  soul  was  created,  it  is  at  once  recognised  that 
it  had  a  beginning  and  consequently  may  have  an 
end,  and  therefore  is  destined  to  perish  unless  the 
existence  is  perpetuated  by  an  express  act  of  volition 
on  the  part  of  the  Creator.  If,  again,  recourse  be  had 
to  the  ontological  proof  based  on  the  fact  of  man's 
possessing  the  notion  of  immortality,  which  notion 
must  consequently  have  objective  reality,  M.  Petavel 
Olliff  again  answers,  with  Kant,  that  this  considera- 
tion may  very  well  prove  the  existence  of  immortality 
in  the  case  of  any  particular  being,  but  not  necessarily 


164  FUTURE  LIFE 

the  personal  immortality  of  the  being  possessing  this 
simple  notion. 

M.  Petavel  Olliff  retains  only  the  theological  argu- 
ment based  on  the  rational  idea  of  a  conformity  be- 
tween the  nature  of  a  being  and  the  aim  assigned  to 
its  existence.  This  argument  is,  however,  at  bottom, 
merely  the  voicing  of  that  idea  of  an  inevitable  justice 
which  every  man  feels  in  his  conscience.  To  this,  on 
the  other  hand,  he  urges  the  objection  that  if  in  reality 
present  injustice  calls  for  compensation  in  a  future 
life,  that  compensation  does  not  necessarily  imply 
absolute  immortality,  for  a  temporary  survival  would 
be  sufficient  to  satisfy  the  idea  of  justice. 

Arguing  from  such  premises,  the  conditionalist 
school  opines  that  the  soul  of  man  has  no  necessary 
right  to  immortality,  but  acquires  that  privilege 
through  the  operation  of  the  infinite  merits  of  Christ, 
who  is  come  to  transform  our  nature  in  the  persons 
of  the  most  worthy  among  us,  who,  by  triumphing 
over  the  material  passions  of  worldly  life,  have  de- 
served to  be  freed  from  death  and  allowed  to  enter 
the  world  of  pure  spirits. 

The  sinner  who  rejects  the  divine  grace  is  a 
wretched  being  who  destroys  his  own  soul  or  allows 
it  to  die  of  disease  through  his  failure  to  make  the 
necessary  effort  to  partake  of  the  immortality  offered 
to  him.  He  is  doomed  to  disappear  even  as  those 
useless  organisms  which  in  the  struggle  'for  life  fail 
to  adapt  themselves  to  new  surroundings.  His  soul 
will  doubtless  survive  a  sufficient  time  after  death  to 
undergo  its  punishment.  But  if  it  does  nothing  to 
improve  itself  or  cure  the  disease  which  undermines 
it,  it  will  inevitably  succumb  at  the  second  death  and 


CONDITIONAL  IMMORTALITY  165 

will  lapse  into  nothingness.  So  the  punishment  in- 
flicted is  indeed  eternal,  but  only  in  its  effect  —  in  the 
destruction  which  it  involves,  and  not  in  the  immor- 
tality of  the  conscience  undergoing  it.  The  condi- 
tionalists  assert  that  this  was  the  doctrine  of  the  early 
Church ;  indeed  passages  can  be  found  in  support  of 
it  in  the  Epistles  of  the  Apostles  and  in  the  first 
Fathers  of  the  Church. 

As  regards  St.  Paul  in  particular,  the  conditionalists 
are  unanimous  in  declaring  their  doctrine  to  express 
better  than  any  other  the  real  meaning  of  the  great 
Apostle.  In  many  passages  where  St.  Paul  touches 
upon  the  fate  of  the  wicked,  says  M.  Babut  (he  in- 
stances twenty-five  such  passages),  he  uses  terms 
which  certainly  suggest  destruction.  Once  or  twice 
he  speaks  of  suffering  and  tribulation,  but  he  adds 
nothing  about  their  being  without  end. 

It  might  nevertheless  be  objected  that  eternal  pun- 
ishment is  explicitly  affirmed  in  2  Thessal.  i.  9: 
"  They  shall  suffer  the  pains  of  eternal  perdition 
from  the  face  of  the  Lord,  and  from  the  glory  of 
his  power."  The  conditionalists,  however,  reject 
this  translation,  to  substitute  the  following,  as  being 
in  their  opinion  a  more  correct  rendering :  "  Who 
shall  be  punished  with  everlasting  destruction  from 
the  presence  of  the  Lord  and  from  the  glory  of  his 
power." 

Whatever  may  or  may  not  have  been  the  opinion 
held  by  the  first  Christians,  it  is  certain  the  condition- 
alist  theory  did  not  prevail  in  the  early  Church ;  and, 
already  in  the  fourth  century,  under  the  combined 
influence  of  ancient  Grecian  philosophy  and  the  teach- 
ing of  St.  Augustine,  religious  dogma  had  become 


166  FUTURE  LIFE 

distinctly  universalist,  even  if  it  had  not  been  so  from 
the  beginning,  and  it  has  since  remained  the  same 
without  any  modification  of  principle. 

It  must  be  recognised  also  that  the  conditionalist 
doctrine  is,  above  all,  theological  in  its  conception, 
and  is  addressed  only  to  Christian  churches.  It  wears, 
moreover,  an  appearance  of  exclusivism  rendering  it 
almost  inadmissible  by  non-believers;  one  of  its  up- 
holders, Dodwell,  went  so  far  as  to  maintain  that 
the  ceremony  of  baptism  performed  by  a  Protestant 
priest  in  an  episcopal  church  constituted  a  necessary 
condition  of  immortality.  But  this  is  a  narrow  view, 
obviously  unjust  and  rejected  nowadays  by  most  au- 
thoritative adherents  of  the  doctrine,  who  endeavour, 
on  the  contrary,  to  broaden  a  conception  which  is  in 
itself  too  narrow,  by  showing  that  the  privilege  of 
immortality  can  be  bestowed  upon  all  the  righteous, 
even  though  not  Christian,  seeing  that  Christ  lived 
and  suffered  for  the  whole  of  mankind.  Nevertheless 
one  cannot  shut  one's  eyes  to  the  fact  that  one  of  the 
chief  reasons  why  conditionalism  is  favourably  viewed 
in  Protestant  circles  is  that  it  permits  the  eternity  of 
the  punishment  of  hell  to  be  put  on  one  side,  without 
recurrence  to  the  Romanist  idea  of  purgatory,  regard- 
ing it  as  a  doctrine  prepared  to  meet  certain  circum- 
stances. 

On  the  other  hand,  this  solution  by  the  theory  of 
limited  survival  and  gradual  death  presents  an  ex- 
treme pliancy  which  permits  it  to  be  easily  adapted  to 
all  needs,  and  at  the  same  time  to  justify  the  most 
diverse  theological  interpretations. 


CHAPTER    XIV 

SPIRITISM    AND    THEOSOPHY 

The  Astral  Body  the  Same  as  the  Egyptian  T^et  and  the  Elysian  Shades. 

—  Its  Existence  forgotten  under  Scholastic  Teaching.  —  Spiritistic 
Theory  of  the  Fates  of  Discarnate  Souls.  —  Diabolical  Possession,  — 
Power  exercised  by  Discarnate  Spirits  through  the  Astral  Body  of 
the  Medium.  — Table-Turning,  as  a  Means  of  Communication,  infer- 
ior to  Hypnotic  Trance.  —  Lack  of  Authenticity  in  Spirit  Communi- 
cations. —  Theory  that  the  Incarnation  of  Man  is  punitive.  — 
Character  of  the  Astral  Body  determined  by  the  Life  led  in  the 
Physical  Body,  —  Need  of  Repeated  Reincarnations.  —  The  Five 
Invisible  Bodies  distinguished  by  Theosophists,  in  Addition  to  the 
Physical  Body.  —  Resemblance  of  this  Doctrine  to  the  Doctrines  of 
Egyptians,  Hindus,  and  Chaldeans,  —  Functions  and  Composition 
of  the  Etheric  Body,  —  Of  the  Kamic  or  Astral  Body,  —  Rise  of  the 
Soul  when  freed  from  the  Astral  Body,  —  Development  of  the 
Buddhistic  Body.  —  Reincarnation  demanded  by  the  Law  of  Karma. 

—  Evolution  after  Reincarnation.  —  Majority  of  Mankind  blind  to 
Karma.  —  Inflexibility  of  this  Law,  —  Development  continuous 
from  Mineral  Molecules  to  the  Highest  Living  Beings.  —  Develop- 
ment of  the  Invisible  Bodies  parallel  to  that  of  the  Faculties.  — 
Essential  Difference  between  Theosophy  and  Spiritism,  —  Theo- 
sophical  Theory  of  the  Means  of  acquiring  Knowledge  of  the 
World  beyond. 

IN  order  to  complete  our  survey  of  ancient  doc- 
trines regarding  survival,  we  now  intend  to 
examine  two  systems  directly  connected  there- 
with, although  in  their  present  form  they  are  of 
quite  recent  origin.  Both  of  them  revert  to  the 
notion  of  an  astral  body,  that  is,  that  fluid  which 
the  soul  employs  as  an  intermediary  in  acting  upon 
the  living  physical  body,  and  which  escapes  together 
with  the  soul  to  serve  it  as  an  envelope  in  the  life 


168  FUTURE  LIFE 

beyond  the  grave.  This  is  clearly  the  theory  already 
encountered  in  the  ancient  Egyptian  doctrine  which 
distinguished  in  man  a  fluidic  part,  the  t'et,  the  en- 
velope of  the  spiritual  soul,  of  the  ego  proper,  and 
the  organ  of  its  various  faculties.  The  existence  of 
this  envelope  is  admitted,  by  implication  at  all  events,  | 
in  all  ancient  religions  when  they  speak  of  the  shades 
of  the  dead  wandering  in  the  Elysian  fields,  or  of 
attenuated  phantoms  impalpable  and  scarcely  visible 
to  the  eye,  which  manifest  themselves  to  the  occa- 
sional terror  of  the  living.  During  the  Middle  Ages 
this  doctrine  was  somewhat  forgotten.  Scholasti- 
cism contrasted,  without  any  possible  kind  of  inter- 
mediary, the  two  elements  constituting  the  human 
being,  namely,  the  spiritual  soul,  imperceptible  to 
the  senses,  and  the  material  body,  which  alone  was 
visible  and  tangible.  To-day  the  old  doctrine  re- 
appears, this  time  backed  by  a  philosophy  founded 
upon  the  notion  of  survival,  and  reproducing  in  its 
principal  features,  but  in  more  modern  garb,  the 
teaching  of  antiquity. 

According  to  the  spiritistic  theory,  the  discarnate 
soul,  on  passing  into  the  world  beyond  the  grave, 
^:T^  draws  with  it  the  astral  body,  or  perispirit,  which  it 
-^C^f^j possessed  in  earthly  life;  it  therefore  suffers  no  radi- 
cal change  of  its  nature  owing  to  the  mere  fact  of 
dying,  but  simply  maintains  the  same  stage  of  de- 
velopment which  it  reached  on  earth,  which  deter- 
^^^^,^v-'  'mined  the  condition  of  the  astral  envelope;  thus  it 
^  dJ^M^is  that  the  soul  finds  in  itself  the  reward  or  punish- 
^  ^v^^'^'^rnent  of  its  worldly  acts.  If  it  has  practised  justice, 
vw^  •     if  it  has  busied  itself  with  elevated  thoughts  raised 


SPIRITISM  AND   THEOSOPHY  169 

above  mere  material  preoccupations,  it  enjoys  in  con- 
sequence a  lighter  and  subtler  perispirit,  thanks  to 
which  it  can  rise  far  above  the  earth  and  reach  the 
highest  sphere  set  apart  for  righteous  souls;  can 
attain  perhaps  the  region  of  those  pure  spirits  which 
are  no  longer  subject  to  the  law  of  reincarnation. 

As  for  the  guilty  soul,  it  is  chained  to  an  almost 
material  perispirit,  which  keeps  it  in  the  lower  re- 
gions close  to  earth,  where  are  to  be  met  with  only 
the  least  developed  souls  together  with  those  of  the 
wicked.  These  unhappy  souls  still  retain  the  memory 
and  physical  needs  of  earthly  life,  and  they  are  always 
anxious  to  become  reincarnated  in  order  to  find  once 
more  those  material  pleasures  the  craving  for  which 
haunts  them.  Being  deprived  of  these,  they  seek  to 
give  themselves  at  least  the  illusion  thereof,  and 
appear  to  the  living  as  often  as  they  find  the  pos- 
sibility of  so  doing.  Generally  this  occurs  under 
harmful  or  dangerous  conditions,  for  they  are  gov- 
erned by  the  thoughts  of  hatred  and  jealousy  amassed 
in  the  course  of  continual  torment.  It  is  then  that 
they  become  noxious  beings,  or  what  the  Church  calls 
demons. 

In  their  eagerness  for  reincarnation  they  some- 
times succeed  in  capturing  a  living  body  momen- 
tarily vacated  by  its  habitant  soul,  and  it  is  thus 
that  they  bring  about  the  phenomenon  of  "  diaboli- 
cal possession,"  which  truly  corresponds  to  a  reality 
in  the  actual  sense  given  to  it  by  the  ancients. 

As  a  general  rule  discarnate  spirits  can  manifest 
themselves  to  us  by  acting  upon  the  partially  free 
perispirit  of  a  living  person;  and  if  they  succeed  in 
governing  this  as  they  wish,  they  are  able  to  induce 


170  FUTURE  LIFE 

in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  medium  acting  as  their 
intermediary  certain  definite  physical  effects  devoid 
of  any  apparent  cause.  These  often  take  the  form 
of  wall-tappings,  the  creaking  of  furniture,  especially 
tables,  the  moving  of  objects  out  of  reach,  and  the 
fall  of  stones. 

Besides  these  effects  of  a  more  or  less  crude  descrip- 
tion others  may  be  observed  partaking  of  a  more 
definite  intellectual  character  and  denoting  the  in- 
visible presence  of  a  conscious  agent.  These  are 
spirit  communications  proper.  -  In  the  majority  of 
cases  they  are  transmitted  merely  by  shocks  given 
to  a  table  upon  which  the  action  of  the  medium  is 
operating.  As  a  rule,  however,  the  medium  is  as- 
sisted by  collaborators,  who  unite  with  him  to  form 
what  is  termed  technically  a  chain,  and  they  thus  by 
means  of  their  own  fluid  supply  the  additional  force 
required. 

The  table  rises,  bends  to  one  side,  regains  the  hori- 
zontal, and  returns  an  intelligent  answer  by  means 
of  jerks,  which  it  formulates  into  letters  and  words, 
according  to  a  conventional  alphabet. 

It  acts,  indeed,  as  would  a  conscious  being,  and 
I  in  the  slowness,  rapidity,  or  abruptness  of  its  gen- 
\  eral  conduct,  reproduces  the  attitude  which  that  being 
I  would  assume  under  similar  circumstances.  It  gives 
[  the  impression  of  being  the  interpreter  of  some  un- 
>  seen  interlocutor,  capable  of  taking  part  in  a  discus- 
(  sion  with  personal  feeling,  and  even  of  replying  to 
(  a  mental  question,  thus  showing  that  it  has  power 
\  to  read  thought. 

Table-turning  constitutes  only  a  very  slow  means 
of  communication  and  is  more  or  less  crude  in  kind; 


SPIRITISM  AND   THEOSOPHY  171 

the  action  of  discarnate  spirits  can  be  exerted  in 
much  more  rapid  ways  when  appropriate  mediums 
are  forthcoming.  They  can  then  obtain  direct  com- 
mand over  any  particular  organ  of  the  medium,  sub- 
stituting their  will  for  his.  In  this  case  the  medium 
falls  into  a  hypnotic  sleep,  losing  consciousness  of  his 
own  personality ;  he  then  awakens  in  a  state  of  trance, 
that  is  to  say,  his  physical  body  has  become  the 
temporary  organ  of  some  occult  personality  which 
has  taken  the  place  of  his  own.  In  this  condition 
he  acts  precisely  as  would  this  other  being  who 
thinks  with  his  brain,  sees  with  his  eyes,  hears  with 
his  ears,  speaks  with  his  mouth,  and  writes  with  his 
hands. 

The  invisible  interlocutor  thus  makes  verbal  and 
written  communications  entirely  different  from  those 
which  the  medium  would  make  in  his  normal  state. 
Even  to  the  minutest  details,  in  the  tone  of  his 
voice  and  the  irregularities  of  his  writing,  these 
communications  give  evidence  of  a  distinct  person- 
ality, often  recognised  by  those  present  as  belonging 
to  some  dead  person  with  whom  they  may  have  had 
intercourse  during  his  terrestrial  existence. 

Spiritist  gatherings  thus  receive  many  communica- 
tions which  are  particularly  precious  in  their  opinion ; 
for  in  them  they  recognise  the  last  advice  of  those 
whom  they  knew  and  loved  upon  earth,  and  they 
consider  this  to  be  evidence  of  their  constant  aid. 
Moreover,  they  imagine  that  they  are  in  this  manner 
vouchsafed  a  glimpse  of  the  world  beyond  and  pos- 
sess of  its  existence  the  explicit,  tangible,  irrefutable 
proof  for  which  man  has  yearned  so  long. 

It  is  clear  that  these  communications  would  be  of 


17^  FUTURE  LIFE 

inestimable  value  were  their  authenticity  well  estab-  \ 
lished.  But  it  must,  alas,  be  admitted,  as  we  shall  ' 
again  remark  when  dealing  with  the  matter  in  a 
scientific  light,  that  they  lack  the  convincing  force 
which  we  should  like  to  attribute  to  them.  If,  as 
far  as  facts  are  concerned,  they  are  often  founded 
upon  exact  details  which  sufficiently  guarantee  them 
in  the  view  of  their  advocates,  they  are  far  from 
possessing  the  same  value  for  others.  Moreover, 
different  spiritistic  schools  are  far  from  professing 
a  uniform  doctrine  with  regard  to  the  life  beyond. 

The  most  generally  accepted  theory  is  that  man 
was  originally  created  as  a  pure  spirit,  but  in  a  kind 
of  spiritual  infancy,  from  which  he  has  gradually 
emerged,  owing  to  a  progressive  evolution,  the  re- 
sult of  his  own  nature  tending  to  approach  ever 
more  closely  the  infinite  perfection  of  the  Creator. 
This  evolution  may  be  carried  out  in  the  angelic 
state  entirely,  if  the  spirit,  possessing  free-will,  knows 
how  to  conform  to  the  divine  law  and  repress  all 
tendency  toward  evil.  In  the  contrary  case,  if,  for 
instance,  it  allows  itself  to  be  seduced  by  the  glamour 
of  material  life,  it  will  be  condemned  to  become  in- 
carnate in  a  human  body,  and  hence  to  carry  on  its 
development  in  the  midst  of  the  temptations  and  dif- 
ficulties inherent  in  the  terrestrial  world. 

After  death  the  discarnate  soul,  entering  the  world 
beyond,  takes  with  it  the  more  or  less  material  or 
subtile  perispirit  which  it  has  formed  in  the  course  of 
mortal  life;  and  since  it  must  atone  for  sins  com- 
mitted, it  first  passes  through  a  suffering  period,!  7 
fixed  according  to  the  nature  of  the  perispirit.  If/)  , 
it  so  deserves,  it  issues  thence  completely  purged  and' 


SPIRITISM  AND   THEOSOPHY  173 

recovers  its  place  among  the  pure  spirits,  there  to 
pursue  its  gradual  ascent  toward  infinite  perfection. 
If,  on  the  contrary,  it  has  proved  unable  to  throw 
off  its  semi-material  envelope  by  freeing  itself  from 
the  base  desires  whereof  it  is  the  symbol  and  out- 
come, it  is  sentenced  to  reincarnation,  and  returns 
to  earth  to  undergo  fresh  trial,  lasting  perhaps  until 
the  c^summation  of  time. 

Man's  sojourn  upon  earth  thus  constitutes  the 
manifestation  of  that  original  sin  which  he  committed 
in  his  spiritual  existence,  and  for  which  he  atones 
here  below.  A  poet  has  well  expressed  the  spiritist 
doctrine : 

"  L'homme  est  un  dieu  tomb^,  qui  se  souvient  des  cieux." 

He  is  aware  that  he  is  undergoing  a  purgatory  upon 
earth,  and  that  he  must  mend  his  ways  if  he  would 
return  to  the  heavenly  world  of  pure  spirits,  for 
otherwise  he  is  perhaps  exposed  to  an  endless  se- 
quence of  trials  in  the  present  life  and  in  the  world 
to  come. 

Theosophy  in  its  present  form  is  a  species  of 
mystical  philosophy,  treating  of  all  the  problems  of 
higher  metaphysics  and  seeking  to  find  the  solution 
of  them  in  its  own  peculiar  conception  of  the  invis- 
ible world,  of  which  it  regards  the  material  world 
to  be  a  mere  crude  and  imperfect  manifestation.  It 
thus  embodies  much  of  the  teaching  of  ancient  reli- 
gions, especially  the  Hindu  religion.  All  this  it  has 
welded  into  a  homogeneous  body  of  doctrine,  which 
is,  however,  beyond  the  reach  of  experimental  control. 
It  is  not  for  us  here  to  give  a  complete  account  of 


174  FUTURE  LIFE 

theosophical  doctrine;  we  shall  merely  summarise 
that  part  which  concerns  the  destiny  of  the  human 
soul,  and  this  part  we  may  regard  as  being  in  some 
respects  the  culmination  of  ancient  doctrines. 

Just  as  theosophy  regards  the  material  world  as 
constituting  merely  an  insignificant  portion  of  the 
whole  of  creation,  so  it  declares  the  human  being 
not  to  be  limited  to  the  physical  body,  which  is  all 
that  we  can  perceive,  but  also  to  embrace  a  fluid-like 
and  invisible  part,  the  intermediary  organ  through 
which  the  conscious  ego  acts.  This  fluid-like  part 
is  in  itself  exceedingly  complex,  and  is  composed 
of  a  series  of  distinct  bodies,  one  encased  within 
another;  each  of  these  corresponds  to  some  par- 
ticular faculty  of  the  soul,  and  the  consecutive 
elements  become  more  and  more  immaterial  in 
proportion  as  they  are  in  closer  proximity  to  the 
conscious  ego. 

Theosophy  thus  distinguishes  the  following  bodies : 

1.  The  etheric  body,  which  ensures  the  form  and 
life  of  the  physical  body  and  occurs  in  all  living 
beings,  animal  or  vegetable. 

2.  The  kamic  or  astral  body,  which  is  the  organ 
of  the  passions  and  desires ;  it  is  found  in  the  higher 
animals. 

3.  The  mental  body,  especially  characterising  man; 
it  is  the  organ  of  the  intellect  in  its  various  mani- 
festations. 

4.  The  causal  body,  which  conceives  abstract  ideas, 
receives  the  unconscious  residue  of  past  existences, 
out  of  which  is  to  spring  the  germ  of  future 
existences. 

5.  Finally,    the   Buddhistic    body,    the   organ    of 


SPIRITISM  AND   THEOSOPHY  175 

unselfish  love  and  feelings  of  charity  and  self-sacrifice, 
which  is   found,  but   in  a   still   embryonic  state,   inj 
persons  of  devotedness,  such  as  saints  and  heroes.   \ 

Clearly  this  is  a  revival  in  another  form  of  those 
distinctions  admitted  by  the  ancient  Egyptians  and 
by  the  Hindus,  which  we  noticed  in  earlier  chapters. 

The  ego,  or  immaterial  manifestation  of  the  deity, 
is  the  ka  of  the  Egyptians,  the  atma  of  the  Hindus, 
—  just  as  the  mental  body  is  the  ab;  the  astral  body 
enveloping  it  the  fet;  while  the  etheric  body  or 
vitality  of  the  physical  body  is  the  hati.  As  for  the 
causal  body,  it  is  the  karma  of  the  Hindus,  the  fero- 
her,  or  rather  the  kerdar,  of  the  Chaldeans. 

First  in  order  of  materiality  comes  the  etheric 
body,  indissolubly  united  to  the  physical  body,  the 
form  and  existence  of  which  it  ensures.  It  governs 
the  manifold  workings  of  organic  life,  with  which 
it  is  born  and  with  which  it  expires,  and  is  com- 
posed of  semi-material  ether-like  particles,  which 
may  be  considered  as  being  infinitely  minute  even 
when  compared  with  the  atoms  conceived  by 
physicists. 

Next  comes  the  kamic  body,  that  of  the  passions 
and  desires,  usually  termed  the  astral  body.  It  is 
essentially  the  organ  of  feeling ;  through  it  the  living 
being  becomes  conscious  of  pleasure,  pain,  passion, 
desire,  and  regret;  it  is  composed  of  elements  even 
more  subtile  than  those  of  the  etheric  body,  —  in- 
finitely minute  as  compared  with  ether-atoms.  The 
nature  of  these  elements  is  not,  however,  absolutely 
uniform  in  all  human  beings,  but  varies  largely  ac- 
cording to  individuals,  as  indeed  does  physiological 
sensitiveness. 


176  FUTURE  LIFE 

More  or  less  crude  and  heavy  as  are  these  ele- 
ments when  allied  to  material  desires,  they  become 
on  the  other  hand  light  and  subtile  in  the  case  of 
men  who  can  govern  their  passions  and  curb  their 
desires;  and  we  thus  see  that  every  one  of  our  ac- 
tions reacts  in  the  course  of  life  upon  the  nature  of 
the  astral  body,  just  as  it  does  upon  the  health  of 
the  physical  body. 

The  astral  body  temporarily  survives  death,  and 
continues  to  exist  in  the  world  beyond  on  taking 
leave  of  the  definite  state  in  which  the  present  life 
has  left  it,  and  it  thus  determines  the  purgatorial 
trial  awaiting  the  discarnate  soul  at  the  threshold 
of  the  life  beyond  the  grave. 

The  soul  then  suffers  owing  to  the  unappeased 
desires  inherent  in  the  astral  body,  from  which  it 
cannot  separate  itself,  rather  than  through  the  mem- 
ory of  its  past  errors;  for  as  a  rule  it  does  not  at 
once  recover  the  conscious  recollection  of  its  earthly 
existence,  but  assumes  a  fresh  consciousness  as  be- 
fits the  altered  conditions  and  surroundings.  At  all 
events,  the  astral  body  is  destined,  like  the  physical 
body,  to  die;  and  severing  itself  in  its  turn  from  the 
discarnate  soul,  it  leaves  it  surrounded  henceforth 
by  the  mental  body,  compounded  of  fluid-like  ele- 
ments even  more  subtile  still  than  were  those  of  the 
astral  body. 

The  soul  thus  lightened  quits  joyfully  this  astral 
world  of  suffering  and  rises  to  a  new  plane,  which 
is  the  world  of  pure  ideas.  It  is  then  permitted  to 
direct  contemplation  of  ideas,  which,  according  to 
Plato,  have  a  real  and  objective  existence;  and  thus 
it  tastes  all  the  intellectual  bliss  of  which  it  is  capable 


SPIRITISM  AND  THEOSOPHY  177 

according  to  the  state  of  its  faculties  and  the  nature 
of  its  mental  body  more  or  less  refined.  This  is  the 
temporary  heaven  named  by  the  Hindus  devachan.  \^' 
At  the  same  time  the  soul  recovers  the  complete 
view  of  its  past,  preserved  in  images  which  it  can 
understand  and  read;  it  thus  becomes  conscious  of 
the  successive  existences  through  which  it  has  passed, 
and  seeing  the  connection  between  the  acts  of  its 
different  lives,  appreciates  their  happy  and  unhappy 
incidents  in  a  true  light,  understands  the  trials  it 
has  undergone  and  the  joys  it  has  felt,  for  it  recog- 
nises the  working  of  the  inevitable  justice  of  the 
Hindu  karma,  which  leaves  no  act  unpunished  or 
unrewarded,  nay  not  even  the  thoughts  of  which  we 
are  the  authors. 

If  in  the  course  of  its  bygone  lives  the  soul  has 
succeeded  in  paying  off  what  is  due  to  the  karma, 
and  has  at  the  same  time  multiplied  good  works, 
nourished  feelings  of  charitableness,  and  thus  de- 
veloped the  Buddhistic  body  composed  of  yet  more 
subtile  elements  than  those  of  the  mental  body  —  if 
it  has  done  all  this,  the  soul  may  be  permitted  to 
quit  this  body  too,  as  it  has  already  quitted  the  as- 
tral body,  and  penetrate  into  yet  another  world  still 
closer  to  the  divinity;  and  henceforth  it  may  pursue 
its  eternal  evolution  without  having  again  to  submit 
to  the  harsh  law  of  incarnation. 

In  the  contrary  case,  which  is  that  of  the  majority 
of  mankind,  even  of  the  best,  the  law  of  the  karma  is 
not  satisfied;  sins  still  remain  to  be  expiated,  and 
trials  to  be  undergone,  and  the  soul  is  condemned 
to  begin  a  new  existence  in  a  material  body.  When 
the  time  arrives  for  its  reincarnation,  it  gradually 


178  FUTURE  LIFE 

redescends  through  the  various  semi-material  planes 
which  it  had  traversed  on  its  ascension,  and  assumes 
in  each  an  appropriate  body. 

By  the  development  of  the  germs  preserved  in  its 
causal  body,  the  soul  gains  first  of  all  a  mental  body, 
then  an  astral  body,  both  of  which  it  finds  composed 
of  elements  more  or  less  subtile  or  crude,  according 
to  the  state  of  development  which  it  has  attained,  and 
according  to  the  existence  which  awaits  it  in  order 
to  satisfy  the  karma.  So  soon  as  its  fluid-like  bodies 
are  thus  reconstituted,  it  unites  with  the  etheric  body 
supplied  partly  by  the  parents  along  with  the  physical 
germ  at  the  moment  of  conception,  and  enters  into 
matter.  In  the  course  of  this  successive  reassumption 
of  bodies  more  or  less  subtile  or  crude,  the  immaterial 
soul  becomes  gradually  oblivious  of  its  anterior  lives ; 
the  memory  thereof  becomes  more  and  more  deeply 
imbedded  in  the  unconscious  being  in  proportion  as 
the  causal  body  becomes  less  capable  of  radiating 
freely,  for  it  is  henceforth  brought  to  a  standstill  by 
the  impassable  barrier  of  crude  elements  on  which  it 
cannot  have  any  effect. 

Thus  a  new  entity  has  come  into  being,  which, 
though  it  enters  into  life  with  the  temperament,  char- 
acter, and  even  destiny  resulting  from  its  past  exist- 
ences, is  conscious  of  nothing  save  its  present  state.'-' 
Its  psychological  development,  from  birth,  nay  even 
from  conception,  onwards,  follows  the  course  of  evolu- 
tion necessary  in  all  human  beings ;   its  etheric  body , 
united   with   the   embryo   determines   its    form   and' 
growth;    the  astral  body  appears  at  birth  with  thai 
consciousness  of  pain ;  the  mental  body,  half-dormant 
during  infancy,  gradually  awakens  as  the  personality 


/ 


SPIRITISM  AND   THEOSOPHY  179 

becomes  more  marked  and  the  moral  and  intellectual 
faculties  make  themselves  manifest. 

The  being  thus  constituted  passes  through  the  joys  / 
and  sorrows  of  life,  and  is  called  upon  to  struggle- 
against  its  wicked  inclinations,  to  do  good  and  to 
combat  evil,  —  to  ensure,  in  fine,  its  own  moral  de- 
velopment by  obedience  to  law.  But  oftener  in  its 
ignorance  it  errs,  and  in  the  midst  of  life's  joys  and 
sorrows,  sees  nothing  in  the  unhoped-for  successes 
which  it  wins  or  in  the  unexpected  reverses  it  en- 
counters; sees  nothing  in  the  unremitting  efforts 
which  it  must  make  of  its  own  initiative  but  the  un- 
conscious play  of  unjust  chance  favouring  some  and 
crushing  others;  while  in  reality  it  is  the  supreme! 
unbiassed  law  that  is  at  work  around  it,  always 
active  despite  the  obscuring  veil,  always  equitable 
and  beneficent  in  principle,  in  spite  of  its  apparent 
injustice. 

This  state  of  ignorance  with  regard  to  the  law  is 
still  no  doubt  prevalent  with  the  majority  of  mankind, 
yet  men  cannot  fail  at  times  to  divine  its  existence, 
when  it  is  granted  them  to  feel  those  apparently  in- 
explicable impressions  which  suddenly  shed  a  new 
light  for  them  upon  the  connection  existing  unsus-  ^    ^, 
pected  between   certain   facts.     They   then  catch   a  Q  ^X-^ 
glimpse  of  the  reason  of  certain  antipathies,  discover 
the  justification  of  certain  forebodings,  and  thus  win   X 
an  insight  into  that  directing  power  which  the  causal  '^^'^■^* 
body  was  momentarily  able  to  call  up  from  the  depths  ^^    --^ 
of  the  unconscious  self,  v->^tr^v 

Whatever  may  be  the  case,  veiled  though  it  remains  :^ « ^  'U 
from  mankind,  the  law  of  the  karma  reveals  itself  to    :,  i. 
us  in  the  more  or  less  lofty  teachings  formulated  by  <^'j^ 


V-6' 


180  FUTURE  LIFE     , 

our  own  conscience,  according  to  the  stage  of  devel- 
opment which  it  has  reached.  Without  doubt,  that 
teaching  is  not  uniform  for  all  mankind;  an  act 
which  is  held  praiseworthy  among  savage  tribes  may 
become  a  sin  or  even  a  crime  among  civilized  peoples. 
But  these  differences  are  but  one  sign  among  many 
of  the  inequality  of  progress  among  human  races, 
and  the  general  law  none  the  less  holds  true  in  all 
its  strictness.  Man  is  destined  always  to  progress, 
and  he  can  do  so  only  by  expiation  and  charity,  joy- 
fully accepting  the  trials  which  are  the  consequence 
of  his  past  errors,  and  at  the  same  time  endeavouring 
always  to  be  of  service  to  his  fellow-beings  and  even 
sacrificing  himself  for  them.  He  may  be  confident  of 
being  rewarded  later,  if  not  in  this  life,  in  the  life 
to  come,  or  rather  in  a  subsequent  life;  for  the  law 
can  forget  none  of  his  acts,  and  must  award  him  his 
recompense  as  well  as  his  chastisement.  We  know, 
even  as  Christ  has  said,  that  the  Eternal  Father  will 
remember  even  the  draught  of  water  given  in  His 
name. 

According  to  theosophy,  this  necessity  for  contin- 
uous development,  which  is  the  essence  of  human 
existence,  is  nothing  but  a  particular  application  of 
the  general  law  regulating  the  universe  as  a  whole, 
from  the  lowliest  mineral  molecule  to  the  highest  of 
living  beings.  All  things  appear  to  us  in  a  continued 
state  of  "  becoming,"  to  be  perpetually  on  the  ascent 
toward  a  more  subtile  state,  admitting,  as  the  case 
may  be,  of  more  varied  properties,  of  a  less  restricted 
activity,  of  a  better  defined  individuality,  and  at  the 
same  time,  with  the  higher  beings,  of  a  greater  degree 
pf  responsibility  in  proportion  as  they  arrive  at  a  less 


SPIRITISM  AND   THEOSOPHY  181 

imperfect  comprehension  of  that  infinite  perfection  to 
which  they  desire  to  approximate. 

These  different  bodies  conceived  by  theosophy  are 
found  in  each  of  us  in  a  state  of  development  corre- 
sponding to  that  of  the  faculties  of  which  they  are  the 
expression.  The  causal  body,  for  instance,  may  even 
be  wanting  in  certain  races  of  men  which  possess  only 
a  weakly  developed  mental  body,  whilst  on  the  other 
hand,  in  animals  endowed  with  a  certain  degree  of 
intelligence  the  mental  body  is  already  apparent  in  an 
embryonic  state;  and  this  is  equally  the  case  as 
regards  the  astral  body  in  certain  kinds  of  vegetables, 
and  as  regards  the  etheric  body,  even  in  lifeless  nature 
as  exemplified  by  certain  crystalline  formations. 

This  conception  of  fluid-like  bodies  in  a  perpetual 
state  of  "  becoming,"  when  applied  to  all  the  elements 
of  the  universe,  shows  us  how  may  be  practically  real- 
ised the  theoretical  idea  of  an  indefinite  development 
governing  all  worlds,  which  we  see  confirmed  before 
pur  very  eyes  in  the  unceasing  evolution  of  living 
organisms  as  well  as  in  the  history  of  mankind. 

The  profound  difference  existing  between  theos- 
ophy and  spiritism  will  at  once  be  seen,  although  both 
doctrines  are  based  upon  the  same  principles,  namely, 
survival,  and  the  continuous  action  of  invisible  beings 
upon  the  material  world.  In  the  view  of  spiritism  this 
life  is  purely  expiatory,  while  to  theosophy  it  is  one 
stage  in  the  advance  toward  the  infinite,  and  a  neces- 
sary condition  without  which  the  law  of  progress 
would  fail  of  application. 

According  to  spiritism  man  is,  as  we  saw  above,  "  a 
fallen  god  who  remembers  " ;  according  to  theosophy, 
on  the  contrary,  mantis Jthe  future  gpjijdiiiJri 


182  FUTURE  LIFE 

_climb  to  heaven.  It  is  at  the  same  time  clear  how  the 
idea  of  changes  of  consciousness,  which  necessarily 
take  place  in  the  widely  different  conditions  and  suc- 
cessive lives  passed  through  by  the  human  soul,  leads 
theosophy  to  interpret  post  mortem  manifestations  in 
quite  a  different  manner  from  that  of  spiritism. 

Theosophy  considers  it  useless  to  seek  for  such 
manifestations,  because  for  the  most  part  such  com- 
munications could  not  emanate  from  the  souls  we 
wish  to  summon,  inasmuch  as  they  have  partially,  or 
at  least  temporarily,  lost  all  consciousness  of  their 

I  past  life ;  and  moreover,  a  return  to  the  terrestrial 
surroundings  which  they  have  quitted  could  not  be 

I  otherwise  than  harmful  to  them  in  their  new  state. 

The  one  means  of  acquiring  during  this  life  any- 
thing like  exact  knowledge  concerning  the  world 
beyond  is  to  render  oneself  capable  of  consciously 
penetrating  it  in  the  astral  body,  and  of  preserving 
upon  the  physical  plane  the  impressions  thus  received. 
To  succeed  in  this,  one  must  study  under  the  direction 
of  the  proficient,  subject  oneself  to  the  moral  and 
physical  training  inculcated  by  the  mystic  schools, 
and  then  alone  can  one  arrive  at  a  personal  conviction. 
For,  according  to  theosophy  the  things  of  the  invisible 
world  are  not  capable  of  any  other  demonstration. 
This,  however,  is  an  assertion  which  we  shall  discuss 
in  the  Second  Part  of  this  work,  in  the  light  of 
positive  science,  and  we  shall  see  what  conclusions 
can  be  deduced  from  its  latest  teachings. 


PART   TWO 

FUTURE   LIFE   IN   THE   LIGHT   OF   MODERN 
SCIENCE 


PART   TWO 

FUTURE   LIFE   IN   THE   LIGHT  OF  MODERN 
SCIENCE 

CHAPTER    I 

DEDUCTIONS    FROM    THE   FUNDAMENTAL   SCIENCES 

The  Future  Life  generally  pictured  by  the  Imagination.  —  Science  now 
expected  by  its  Votaries  to  solve  Problems  outside  the  Domain 
of  Matter.  —  It  has  already  modified  our  Views  of  the  Nature  of 
the  Soul.  —  Why  Theories  of  a  Future  Life  are  subject  to  Experi- 
mental Investigation.  —  The  Material  Existence  of  Heaven  and 
Hell.  —  Our  Right  to  inquire  into  the  Nature  of  Psychic  Force.  — 
General  Principles  revealed  by  Astronomy,  the  Physical  Sciences, 
Mechanics.  —  The  Function  of  Ether  in  the  Physical  Forces  and 
in  Life.  —  The  Personality  of  Every  Living  Organism  not  affected 
by  Changes  of  its  Molecules.  —  Probable  Connection  of  the  Life 
Force  with  the  Vibrations  of  Ether.  —  The  Inability  of  Science 
to  acquaint  us  with  Absolute  Truth.  —  The  Assumption  of  the 
Presence  of  Ether  necessary  in  the  Study  of  Matter. 

IN  the  preceding  chapters  we  have  recalled  the 
manifold  conceptions  of  a  future  life  formed 
by  mankind  in  the  course  of  past  ages.  Not- 
withstanding the  apparent  diversity,  we  have  invari- 
ably found  asserted  the  one  fundamental  principle 
of  survival.  It  always  reappears  among  the  most 
widely  dissimilar  races,  under  the  most  divergent 
climes.  We  find  it  among  primitive  tribes,  and 
we  find  it  where  civilisation  has  attained  its  fur- 
thest progress.  In  their  inability  to  unravel  the 
eternal  riddle,  those  who  represent  the  civilisations 
of  the  past  were  doubtless  forced  to  fall  back  upon 


186  FUTURE  LIFE 

all  the  resources  of  the  imagination  in  order  to 
depict  to  themselves  that  new  life  which  they  were 
as  unable  to  picture  clearly  as  we  ourselves  are 
to-day.  They  consequently  fell  into  the  most  pain- 
ful contradictions.  But  as  far  as  concerns  their  be- 
lief that  man  is  inhabited  by  an  immaterial  element 
independent  of  the  physical  body  and  therefore 
capable  of  surviving  it,  we  encounter  a  unanimous 
agreement,  which  it  was  the  object  of  the  foregoing 
survey  to  illustrate. 

Albeit  the  principle  bequeathed  to  us  by  the  ac- 
cumulated wisdom  of  antiquity  undeniably  acquires 
a  certain  prestige  from  its  undisputed  unanimity,  it 
is  none  the  less  essential  that  it  should  be  submitted 
to  the  test  of  modern  science  and  discussed  in  the 
light  of  the  new  conception  with  which  science  fur- 
nishes us,  to  the  end  that  the  problem  may  receive 
the  utmost  possible  elucidation. 

Science  has  profoundly  modified  the  material 
world,  which  it  daily  renders  more  and  more  sub- 
servient to  the  needs  of  mankind.  The  wonderful 
discoveries  which  it  has  already  achieved  cause  us 
to  expect  even  greater  marvels  in  the  future.  It 
has  laid  bare  to  our  dazzled  eyes  some  of  nature's 
most  jealously  guarded  secrets;  and  it  has  thus 
altered  in  many  essential  points  the  notions  which 
the  human  race  had  formed  concerning  its  place  in 
the  universe.  It  has  even  attempted  indirectly  to 
attack  questions  which,  strictly  considered,  are  re- 
moved from  its  domain,  and  its  enthusiastic  votaries 
look  to  it  to-day  for  a  precise  philosophy  which  shall 
replace  their  lost  beliefs.  That  same  abounding 
faith  which  our  fathers  reposed  in  the  judgments  of 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  SCIENCES  187 

eminent  theologians  is  nowadays  accorded  to  the  au- 
thoritative luminaries  of  science,  when  they  attempt  to 
solve  questions  beyond  the  sphere  of  material  obser- 
vation. Science,  in  a  word,  is  the  one  authority  from 
which  we  are  willing  to  accept  a  solution  of  the  great 
problems  that  have  vexed  mankind  ever  since  the 
dawn  of  intellect,  and  it  is  possible  that  it  may  some 
day  be  able  to  furnish  an  incontrovertible  explana- 
tion. That  day  is  still,  however,  so  exceedingly 
remote  that  we  are  unable  even  to  forecast  it.  Mean- 
while the  eternal  enigma  presses  for  an  answer,  so 
that  we  must  be  satisfied  with  surmises,  and  the 
more  or  less  probable  conjectures  which  science  is 
at  present  in  a  position  to  afford  us. 

It  should,  however,  be  noted  that  among  these 
problems,  that  which  involves  the  nature  of  the 
soul  of  man  is  certainly  one  with  which  science  can 
nowadays  deal  most  effectively;  and  it  has  indeed 
already  worked  a  profound  change  in  the  general 
views  upon  the  subject,  so  that  we  are  of  opinion 
that  the  attempt  which  we  are  making  in  this  book 
cannot  be  condemned  unheard,  on  the  pretext  that 
science  is  unfitted  to  handle  questions  of  this  kind. 
To  such  an  objection  we  may  reply,  in  the  first 
place,  that  theories  concerning  a  future  life  neces- 
sarily involve  certain  assertions  which  affect  the 
perceptible  world  of  sense,  and  that  they  are  con- 
sequently in  great  part,  if  not  entirely,  subject  to 
experimental  investigation.  We  are  therefore  justi- 
fied in  arming  ourselves  with  the  teachings  of  science 
in  order  to  fix  upon  the  most  likely  interpretation 
which  those  theories  are  capable  of  bearing.  This 
is  the  case,  for  instance,  in  so  far  as  are  concerned 


188  FUTURE  LIFE 

the  material  existence  of  heaven  and  hell ;  the  likeli- 
hood of  a  resurrection  of  the  body,  or  of  the  last 
judgment;  and  in  a  general  way  the  legitimacy  of 
our  notions  respecting  the  place  of  the  world  in  the 
universe,  and  the  circumstances  which  will  mark  its 
final  destruction. 

All  these  are  certainly  questions  which  it  would 
nowadays  be  impossible  to  answer  without  the  ut- 
most attention  to  scientific  considerations.  Even 
theologians  no  longer  refuse  to  discuss  them  from 
this  point  of  view,  and  they  will  be  awarded  a 
prominent  place  in  the  present  work.  But  even  be- 
yond those  questions  of  fact  which  depend  immedi- 
ately upon  scientific  observation,  we  have  considered 
it  allowable  to  bring  in  other  theoretical  considera- 
tions, likewise  based  upon  the  positive  sciences,  when- 
ever they  appeared  of  a  nature  to  throw  light  upon 
the  complex  problem  of  the  survival  of  the  soul. 

It  is  for  this  reason  that  we  have  given  especial 
prominence  to  some  of  the  most  striking  among  the 
fundamental  laws,  such  as  the  Law  of  the  Indestruc- 
tibility of  Matter  and  Energy.  We  have  at  the  same 
time  collected  such  theoretical  notions  as  are  at 
present  held  by  the  most  respected  scientists  con- 
cerning the  composition  of  matter,  and  the  manner 
in  'which  forces  of  every  description  may  be  sup- 
posed to  act.  I  We  are  bound  to  consider  the  human 
soul  as  presenting,  upon  the  same  grounds  as  we 
suppose  the  unconscious  forces  to  present,  a  veritable 
manifestation  of  energy;  and  we  are  thus  perfectly 
authorised  to  inquire  into  modern  scientific  theories 
with  a  view  to  discovering  such  as  ar^  applicable  to 
the  case  of  psychical  forced 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  SCIENCES  189 

To  this  investigation  Part  II  of  this  work  is  de- 
voted. We  shall  examine  the  natural  sciences  in  suc- 
cession, with  the  object  of  bringing  together  the 
fundamental  laws,  and  the  most  important  general 
principles  to  which  they  give  rise.  To  these  we 
shall  again  refer  in  our  conclusions,  when  we  make 
our  final  attempt  to  reconcile  the  two  great  bodies 
of  doctrine  to  which  we  have  successively  appealed, 
—  that  of  ancient  philosophy,  and  that  of  modern 
science. 

Astronomy  reveals  to  us  the  immensity  of  the 
worlds,  and  in  so  doing  reminds  us  of  the  insigni- 
ficant place  which  our  earth  occupies  in  the  universe. 
The  physical  sciences  teach  us  the  fundamental  law 
of  indestructibility,  which  we  shall  so  often  have 
occasion  to  recall,  and  they  lead  us  at  the  same 
time  to  conceive  a  mysterious  ether,  in  which  to-day, 
even  as  did  the  wise  men  of  old,  they  seek  the 
fountain-head  of  all  energy.  When  combined  with 
chemistry,  the  physical  sciences  unfold  for  us  the 
complexity  of  elemental  atoms,  and  here  again  point 
out  the  all-important  part  played  by  ether,  according 
to  modern  theory,  as  the  generator  of  matter. 

Rational  mechanics  in  its  turn  steps  in  to  show 
how  it  is  quite  possible  to  comprehend  the  history 
of  the  universe  if  we  assimilate  it,  by  a  perfectly 
legitimate  extension,  to  the  material  systems  whose 
transformations  have  been  already  studied.  Me- 
chanics is  thus  able  to  determine  the  trend  of  the 
world's  history;  it  foresees  that  the  universe  must 
necessarily  reach  an  end ;  above  all,  it  teaches  us  how 
it  is  possible  for  the  mysterious  ether  to  register  the 
past  and  reveal  the  future  through  its  never-ending 


190  FUTURE  LIFE 

vibrations,  which  are  capable  of  infinite  multiplica- 
tion without  being  modified  or  destroyed. 

The  invisible  ether  thus  becomes  the  sole  constitu- 
ent element  of  physical  forces,  and  perhaps,  too,  of 
matter  itself.  When  we  subsequently  enter  upon 
the  domain  of  life,  it  is  from  the  ether  again  that 
we  shall  demand  an  explanation  of  the  new  forces 
brought  into  play.  We  shall  try  to  show,  in  agree- 
ment with  physiologists  of  great  credit,  that  life  is 
something  more  than  the  purely  chemical  reactions 
which  are  its  outward  sign.  It  is  the  controlling 
element  which  governs  those  reactions  in  order  to 
make  them  combine  for  the  realisation  of  the  type 
which  it  has  in  view.  In  every  organism  which  it 
animates,  it  maintains  a  constant  exchange  of  mole- 
cules, which  uninterruptedly  replace  the  exhausted 
molecules  that  are  being  continually  thrown  off. 
The  living  organism,  nevertheless,  preserves  its  own 
permanent  personality,  which  we  are  unable  to  con- 
nect with  any  of  the  material  forces  which  are 
present.  We  are  hence  bound  to  admit  that  we  are 
confronted  with  a  new  force,  independent  of  the 
others  and  of  a  nature  more  subtile  than  theirs. 

The  force  of  life,  then,  under  this  condition  can 
find  no  equivalent  in  material  forces  and  is  unable 
to  play  any  part  in  the  reciprocal  transformations 
which  they  undergo,  so  that  we  cannot  assign  to  it 
any  correlative  when  we  see  it  appear  at  birth  or 
vanish  at  death.  Still  we  are  by  no  means  justified 
in  concluding  that  these  manifestations  have  not 
their  necessary  echo  in  the  vibrations  of  ether,  know- 
ing as  we  do  with  what  strictness  the  law  of  inde- 
structibility takes  charge  of  the  preservation  of  the 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  SCIENCES  191 

minutest  material  atom,  also  of  the  least  developed 
forms  of  energy,  whilst  the  ether  registers  with 
incorruptible  fidelity  the  most  insignificant  facts. 

In  the  earliest  stage  of  their  development  all  living 
germs  are  identical,  and  it  is  impossible  to  distin- 
guish the  humble  protozoan  from  the  highest  organ- 
ism in  the  scale  of  beings,  or  from  the  man  destined 
to  become  a  mighty  genius.  This  radical  difference, 
which  matter  cannot  explain,  is  none  the  less  real, 
but  it  is  of  too  subtile  a  character  for  our  means  of 
observation,  because  it  is  concerned  with  the  ether; 
and  here  again  we  have  to  fall  back  upon  the  hypo- 
thetical fluid  in  which  we  have  already  been  forced 
to  seek  the  explanation  of  the  genesis  of  matter  and 
of  the  mode  in  which  physical  energy  acts.  We  now 
add  living  energy  under  all  the  forms  which  it  is 
capable  of  assuming,  —  first  purely  unconscious,  as 
is  the  case  with  those  organisms  which  reproduce 
the  type  of  the  species  without  any  individuality; 
then  accompanied,  little  by  little,  by  a  more  and  more 
marked  personality,  which  is  clearly  distinguishable 
among  the  higher  animals. 

In  proportion  as  it  rises  in  the  organic  scale,  this 
living  energy  gives  rise  successively  to  the  faculties 
of  sensitiveness  and  intelligence,  which  find  their  most 
perfect  development  in  the  human  species.  In  each 
of  these  faculties  the  ancients  saw  a  distinct  soul. 
We  endeavour  in  our  turn  to  find  these  souls  in  the 
waves  of  a  more  subtile  ether;  and  we  seek  at  the 
same  time  to  discover  whether  it  might  not  be  pos- 
sible for  them,  in  certain  exceptional  cases,  to  mani- 
fest themselves  externally  through  physical  effects, 
furnishing  thus  undeniable  proof  of  their  existence. 


192  FUTURE  LIFE 

The  last  chapters  are  given  up  to  a  discussion  of 
the  numerous  inquiries  which  are  being  prosecuted 
in  this  direction,  researches  on  the  insufficiently- 
explored  border-land  of  science,  which  have  yielded 
many  extraordinary  results.  We  thus  complete  the 
survey  of  the  scientific  data  to  which  we  shall  be 
able  to  appeal  in  drawing  our  conclusions. 

Certainly  we  have  no  expectation  of  being  able  to 
put  forward  here  anything  like  a  final  explanation 
of  this  eternal  energy  which,  under  different  forms, 
is  always  being  renewed.  We  are  only  too  well 
aware  that  the  intelligence  of  man  cannot  take  in 
the  complexity  of  a  problem  the  elements  of  which 
elude  him,  belonging  as  they  do  to  a  domain  other 
than  that  of  matter.  Science,  we  remember,  is  not 
in  a  position  to  acquaint  us  with  absolute  truth,  for 
science  can  handle  truth  only  in  a  concrete  form 
perceptible  to  our  senses.  Even  within  these  re- 
stricted limits  science  is  unable  to  supply  us  with 
one  affirmation  concerning  the  external  world  which 
should  be  free  from  all  possibility  of  doubt.  The 
laws  which  have  been  established  in  various  branches 
of  knowledge  invariably  presuppose  certain  funda- 
mental hypotheses  which  it  is  impossible  to  prove. 
Geometry  itself,  which  may  be  looked  upon  as  being 
preeminently  the  science  of  the  absolute,  is  not  free 
from  this  inherent  defect.  We  are  not  in  a  position, 
for  instance,  to  demonstrate  whether  the  postulate 
laid  down  by  Euclid  concerning  the  non-convergence 
of  parallel  straight  lines  really  does  or  does  not 
agree  with  actual  fact,  seeing  that  certain  geometri- 
cians by  setting  it  aside  have  succeeded  in  establish- 
ing one,  and  even  more  than  one,  theory,  perfectly 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  SCIENCES  193 

coordinated  and  capable  of  an  interpretation  con- 
sistent at  a  pinch  with  facts,  provided  always  that 
we  accept  a  series  of  laboured  hypotheses,  each  more 
improbable  than  another,  the  possibility  of  which, 
however,  we  are  not  entitled  to  deny  absolutely. 

We  must  not  forget  that  science  cannot  vouchsafe 
us  that  absolute  truth  which  we  desire,  yet  we  cannot 
therefore  reject  science  as  a  useless  instrument,  seeing 
that  it  is  none  the  less  the  one  torch  able  to  guide 
us  through  the  eternal  darkness  in  which  we  grope. 
Doubtless  it  is  impotent  to  clear  up  the  problems  of 
pure  metaphysics;  but  in  points  bordering  upon  its 
sphere  it  may  be  consulted  with  utility,  and  can  occa- 
sionally supply  us  with  decisive  considerations.  Thus, 
in  the  observation  to  which  we  referred  above,  con- 
cerning the  meaning  which  rational  mechanics  assigns 
to  the  history  of  the  universe,  it  would  seem  that  we 
obtain  a  powerful  argument  in  favour  of  the  idea  of 
the  creation,  as  opposed  to  the  eternity,  of  matter. 

Moreover  we  shall  see  that  this  same  observation 
leads  us  to  refer  the  end  of  the  universe  to  a  period 
when  the  ether  shall  have  given  all  its  available 
energy  in  the  form  of  heat,  —  energy,  that  is,  re- 
duced to  its  lowest  state.  This  appears  to  us  to 
furnish  a  not  less  decisive  argument  in  favour  of  the 
idea  of  the  survival  of  the  highest  forms  of  ethereal 
energy,  that  is,  of  the  manifestations  of  conscious 
life.  Otherwise,  the  evolution  of  the  universe  would 
become  entirely  meaningless,  if  it  were  merely  des- 
tined to  result  in  the  reduction  to  a  uniform  tempera- 
ture of  all  its  component  elements,  and  if  it  were  not 
to  lead  up  to  the  manifestation  of  conscious  life  upon 
a  higher  plane  than  that  of  matter. 

13 


194  FUTURE  LIFE 

To  take  a  fresh  point  of  view,  we  may  add  that  all 
the  most  recent  scientific  theories,  as  will  be  seen  in 
subsequent  chapters,  agree  in  showing  that  the  mere 
consideration  of  matter  will  not  furnish  an  explana- 
tion in  the  slightest  degree  satisfactory  of  a  single 
perceptible  fact,  for  we  are  always  compelled  to  have 
recourse  to  the  supposition  of  some  more  subtile  ele- 
ment, some  hypothetical  fluid,  which  we  suspect  to 
be  present  although  we  have  never  seen  it.  Here 
again  scientific  observation  makes  a  most  important 
contribution  to  the  discussion  of  the  comparative 
merits  of  the  two  great  rival  doctrines,  spiritualism 
and  materialism,  between  which  philosophers  are 
divided. 

These  various  indications  will  suffice  to  show  the 
interest  of  the  arguments  which  we  can  adduce  in 
the  name  of  science  in  discussions  which  are  appar- 
ently beyond  its  sphere,  and  we  can  at  once  see  the 
value  which  such  considerations  may  acquire  in  our 
study  of  the  problem  of  the  nature  of  the  human 
soul;  for  we  have  here  to  deal  with  a  question  of 
fact,  in  which  positive  observation  must  count  for 
something,  although  it  is  yet  unable  to  offer  a  solu- 
tion or  furnish  that  decisive  proof  which  some  claim 
to  possess  already,  but  which  is  unhappily  not  yet 
strong  enough  to  vanquish  all  objections. 


CHAPTER    II 

ASTRONOMY. THE   EARTH's    PLACE   IN    THE 

UNIVERSE 

The  Role  of  Astronomy  in  correcting  False  Views  of  Cosmogony.— 
The  Erroneous  Conceptions  of  the  Old  Theologians  not  necessarily 
those  of  the  Bible.  —  Opposite  Views  as  to  the  Relative  Ages  of  the 
Earth  and  the  Sun. — The  Probability  of  the  Existence  of  Beings 
like  Man  in  the  Other  Worlds.  —  Possibility  of  exchanging  Ideas 
with  the  Inhabitants  of  Venus  and  Mars.  —  How  the  Theory  of  the 
Plurality  of  Worlds  affects  the  Incarnation  and  the  Redemption.  — 
Light  thrown  by  Geology  on  the  Length  of  the  Habitable  Period 
of  Each  World.  —  The  Agreement  between  Science  and  Religion  to 
be  effected  by  the  Pope. 

ASTRONOMY,  which  raises  man's  mind  above 
the  petty  preoccupations  of  daily  Hfe  and  sets 
^  him  face  to  face  with  that  supreme  order 
governing  all  things  in  the  universe,  is  preeminently 
the  religious  science;  and  the  conceptions  to  which 
it  has  attained  have  at  all  times  exercised  profound 
influence  upon  contemporary  religious  ideas.  In  a 
scientific  examination  of  the  problem  of  survival,  we 
should  therefore  begin  with  astronomy,  which,  if  it 
does  not  furnish  us  with  a  complete  solution,  will  at 
all  events  supply  us,  in  points  trenching  upon  its 
domain,  with  the  necessary  means  of  controlling  the 
theories  proposed.  As  regards  the  Christian  dogma 
in  particular,  it  immediately  reveals  the  error  tainting 
the  traditional  interpretation,  and  we  have  to  dis- 
cover in  what  way  that  interpretation  must  be  modi- 
fied in  order  not  to  clash  with  recent  astronomical 
theories. 


196  FUTURE  LIFE 

As  we  have  already  shown,  the  old  interpretation 
asserted  that  the  end  of  the  earth  inevitably  involved 
the  end  of  the  entire  universe,  and  it  also  viewed 
heaven  and  hell  as  very  definite  localities  according 
to  the  ancient  belief. 

Hell  was  a  place  of  physical  torments,  an  ocean  of 
incandescent  matter  buried  in  the  depths  of  the  earth. 
On  the  other  hand,  heaven  was  also  a  definite  locality, 
situated  above  the  clouds,  above  the  firmament,  that 
vast  solid  vault  set  with  stars  which  forms  the  throne 
of  the  Deity.  There  the  sun  shines  upon  the  elect 
with  purest  light,  and  as  the  poet  has  said  — 

"  At  their  feet  it  is  poised, 
Like  a  brilliant  lamp." 

This  material  conception  remained  unshaken  so 
long  as  the  earth  was  regarded  as  the  centre  of  the 
universe,  and  man  was  imagined  to  be  the  sole  pos- 
sible example  of  intelligent  corporeal  beings.  But 
time  came  when  the  heavenly  vault  was  opened ;  new 
worlds  appeared  to  our  terrified  gaze ;  and  earth  was 
deposed  from  its  long  unquestioned  primacy;  the 
queen  of  the  universe  became  a  petty  satellite  of  the 
sun,  lost  in  the  throng  of  its  sister  planets.  The  sun 
itself  was  but  a  puny  star  flung  carelessly  among  a 
million  others  in  the  same  nebula  and  whirled  like 
them  by  some  superior  power  toward  an  unknown 
goal. 

But  this  vast  nebula  itself,  this  host  of  worlds 
which  already  staggers  the  imagination  and  in  which 
our  earth  is  less  than  an  atom,  this  nebula  is  not  all; 
it  is  but  a  mere  element  in  a  wider  universe  whose 
unsounded  depths  enfold  other  systems  as  limitless 


ASTRONOMY-^  THE  EARTH  197 

and  grand.  In  endless  space,  wherein  the  worlds  are 
sown  like  chance  grains  of  sand,  vainly  do  you  seek 
for  those  abodes  of  punishment  and  reward  destined 
for  those  dead  to  earthly  life,  and  which  were  sup- 
posed to  constitute  the  final  terminus  of  creation. 
Vanished  they  would  seem,  for  ever,  that  material 
hell  and  purgatory  which  lay  hidden  in  the  bowels 
of  earth;  vanished  the  empyrean  which  was  builded 
on  the  vault  of  the  firmament;  and  in  the  minds  of 
many  theologians  and  many  believers  a  new  inter- 
pretation of  dogma  has  succeeded  the  old;  heaven 
and  hell  are  no  longer  localised  places,  but  rather 
states  of  the  immaterial  soul,  happy  or  unhappy. 

God,  who  is  spirit,  fills  all  space  without  being  local- 
ised to  any  determinate  spot ;  hence  likewise  the  souls 
can  be  admitted  everywhere  to  the  contemplation  of 
His  infinite  perfections,  which  constitutes  supreme 
beatitude,  and  heaven  no  longer  needs  to  be  physi- 
cally realised.  Let  us  add  that  if  astronomy  leads  us 
to  reject  a  material  heaven  and  hell,  whose  place  we 
do  not  see  in  the  physical  world,  it  throws  no  obstacle 
in  the  way  of  their  being  real  places,  situated  in  a 
more  subtile  plane  of  matter,  such  as  the  ether,  where 
they  are  consequently  withdrawn  from  our  means  of 
observation.  Such  a  conception  forces  itself  upon  us 
if  we  admit  that  the  soul  carries  its  fluid-like  envelope 
with  it,  and  consequently  always  occupies  a  deter- 
minate place.  Heaven  and  hell  may  retain  their  ob- 
jective existence,  although  vanishing  from  the  physical 
plane  with  which  we  are  now  acquainted. 

The  new  conceptions  which  we  are  forming  to-day 
under  the  influence  of  astronomical  discoveries  offer 
us  a  most  striking  example  of  the  way  in  which 


198  FUTURE  LIFE 

scientific  observation  must  affect  the  interpretation  of 
traditional  dogma.  Religious  apologists  no  longer 
hesitate  to  reject  from  tradition  the  erroneous  notion 
concerning  the  real  situation  of  the  earth  in  the  uni- 
verse which  it  had  received  as  a  legacy  from  the 
ignorance  of  the  early  Christians.  To  them  also  the 
earth  is  no  longer  the  centre  of  the  uniyerse ;  the  sun 
did  not  stop  in  its  course  upon  the  prayer  of  an  Israel- 
itish  chieftain,  in  order  that  he  might  continue  the 
battle  which  was  to  bring  him  victory.  Likewise, 
before  the  appearance  of  man,  the  earth  already  pos- 
sessed a  history,  the  duration  of  which  passes  our 
imagination,  and  which  is  not  reducible  to*  the  Biblical 
six  days ;  the  cataclysm  which  precedes  the  last  judg- 
ment and  is  to  destroy  our  planet  will  certainly  not 
shake  the  universe  to  its  foundations,  neither  will  it 
cause  the  stars  to  fall ;  for  the  worlds  other  than  ours 
it  will  be  an  insignificant  event,  passing  even  unper- 
ceived  by  most  of  them. 

Entering  thus  upon  the  path  of  scientific  interpre- 
tation, religious  apologists  have  not  had  much  dif^- 
culty  in  showing  that  the  erroneous  conceptions  which 
they  reject  are  not  necessarily  those  of  the  sacred 
books  themselves,  which  on  the  contrary  contain  much 
that  better  adapts  itself  to  our  actual  knowledge. 

They  remark,  for  instance,  that  the  order  of  the 
six  days  of  Creation,  as  given  in  the  Bible,  corre- 
sponds pretty  well  in  its  principal  lines  with  the 
great  geological  periods  now  recognised  by  science. 
They  insist,  moreover,  upon  the  creation  of  light, 
placed  by  Genesis  on  the  second  day,  before  that  of 
the  sun,  which  appears  only  in  the  ensuing  epoch, 
as  if  the  inspired  author  had  been  aware  already  of 


ASTRONOMY  —  THE  EARTH  199 

the  existence  of  that  subtile  ether  which  is  diffused 
throughout  the  universe  and  is  the  sole  vehicle  of 
light.  They  also  add  that  the  idea  of  the  creation 
of  the  sun  following  upon  that  of  the  earth,  which 
was  denied  by  the  cosmogony  of  Laplace,  seems  on 
the  contrary  to  find  confirmation  to-day  in  the  theories 
advanced  by  M.  Faye  to  explain  what  has  not  before 
been  explained,  —  namely,  the  retrograde  movement 
of  certain  planets  of  our  solar  system.  It  is  known 
that  the  planets  nearer  to  the  sun,  including  Saturn, 
possess  direct  movement,  whereas  the  exterior  planets 
have  a  retrograde  movement.  In  order  to  explain 
this  anomaly  M.  Faye  would  have  it  that  the  interior 
planets  were  formed  by  the  agglomeration  of  the 
rings  detached  from  the  cosmic  vortices  before  the 
sun  itself  was  formed,  whereas  the  exterior  planets 
were  thrown  off  from  the  central  star  after  its  own 
formation. 

They  also  cite  various  passages  of  Scripture  wherein 
the  earth  is  represented  as  isolated  in  space;  for  in- 
stance, the  remarkable  words  in  Job  xxvi.  7 :  "  He 
stretcheth  out  the  north  over  the  empty  space,  and 
hangeth  the  earth  upon  nothing."  And  again  in 
Isaiah  xl.  22 :  "  That  stretcheth  out  the  heavens  as 
nothing,  and  spreadeth  them  out  as  a  tent  to  dwell  in." 
They  add  that  although  the  astronomical  knowledge 
bequeathed  to  us  by  antiquity  became  gradually  lost 
after  the  rise  of  Christianity,  nevertheless  it  was  not 
quite  unknown  to  the  theologians  of  the  early  Church ; 
and  it  is  interesting  to  encounter  in  their  works  the 
persistent  assertion  that  the  earth  is  isolated  in  space. 
St.  Basil,  who  lived  in  the  fourth  century,  tells  us, 
for  instance,  in  his  Homilies,  that  the  earth  rests  only 


200  FUTURE  LIFE 

on  itself,  that  it  has  been  brought  by  its  own  weight 
to  the  position  it  occupies,  and  can  neither  rise  nor 
fall.i 

St.  Jerome,  upholding  the  resurrection  of  the  body, 
says,  '*  Think  you  that  it  is  more  difficult  to  the 
Lord  to  give  back  life  than  to  hang  the  vast  bulk 
of  the  earth  in  the  void  and  to  keep  it  in  equilibrium 
with  the  waters  which  surround  it?  "  ^  St.  Augustine 
also  remarks  that  when  the  sun  disappears  from  our 
sight  it  lights  other  parts  of  the  earth.^  It  is  true 
that  from  a  religious  consideration  he  rejects  the 
notion  that  the  antipodes  can  be  inhabited,  for  he 
does  not  think  it  possible  for  man  to  cross  the  ocean 
in  order  to  reach  them ;  he  concludes  that  the  inhabi- 
tants of  such  inaccessible  regions  cannot  belong  to  the 
human  species,  since  they  cannot  be  descendants  of 
Adam,  the  common  progenitor  of  all  mankind. 

It  must  therefore  be  admitted  that  the  inspired 
authors  of  the  Bible  possessed  upon  astronomical 
matters  more  exact  knowledge  than  we  should  have 
at  first  supposed;  and  it  is  possible  to  trace  a  faint 
echo  thereof  in  the  Fathers  of  the  Church,  who  were 
thus  often  able  to  keep  clear  of  the  errors  of  their 
day.  At  the  same  time  it  cannot  be  denied  that  the 
generally  accepted  interpretation  of  traditional  dogma 
is  tainted  with  those  errors  and  now  requires  modify- 
ing, regard  being  had  to  the  true  position  of  our  globe 
in  the  universe. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  we  are  led  at  the  same 
time  to  modify  our  notions  regarding  its  inhabitant, 

1  Homilies  i.  and  iv. 

2  Epist.  ad  Pammachium. 

*  **  De  Genesi  ad  litteram,"  lib.  i.  ch.  ix. 


ASTRONOMY— THE  EARTH  201 

man,  whom  we  can  no  longer  view  as  the  only  pos- 
sible corporeal  creature  endowed  with  reason. 

We  have  become  broader  in  our  views,  and  claim 
kinship  with  those  other  distant  worlds  governed  by 
the  same  mechanical  laws  as  our  own,  and  we  can  no 
longer  conceive  that  our  insignificant  planet  should 
possess  the  monopoly  of  intelligent  life;  the  other 
worlds,  often  more  important  than  this,  must  also 
have  reasoning  inhabitants  with  destinies  akin  to  ours. 
Like  us,  they  must  have  been  created  in  the  image  of 
the  only  God,  and  it  is  a  legitimate  question  to  ask 
whether  any  theory  of  a  future  life  can  afford  to 
ignore  their  existence. 

We  know,  moreover,  that  the  most  elementary 
organisms  appear  capable  of  supporting  the  tremen- 
dous cold  of  interplanetary  spaces  without  dying,  and 
since  we  are  not  aware  of  any  spontaneous  genera- 
tion, we  may  perhaps  suppose  that  life  was  brought 
to  the  earth  by  aeroliths  laden  with  micro-organisms 
coming  from  other  worlds,  and  therein  we  should  find 
new  and  particularly  striking  evidence  of  the  com- 
munity of  origin  of  all  living  creatures  throughout 
the  universe. 

Let  it  not  be  said  that  this  is  a  gratuitous  supposi- 
tion, which  it  is  idle  to  discuss,  for  the  notion  of  the 
plurality  of  inhabited  worlds,  which  in  the  present  day 
exercises  a  seductive  influence  over  every  imagina- 
tion, is  borne  in  upon  us  with  all  the  characteristics  of 
moral  evidence,  and  we  observe  indeed  that  the  most 
distinguished  men  of  science,  desirous  of  arguing 
upon  teleological  grounds,  do  not  hesitate,  perhaps 
somewhat  prematurely,  to  make  this  the  basis  of  all 
their  speculations. 


202  FUTURE  LIFE 

Foremost  among  them  all  stands  out  the  philoso- 
pher Jean  Reynaud,  who  revives  the  Gaulish  doctrine 
of  the  incarnations  of  the  circle  of  gwynfid,  and  who 
views  the  present  life  as  the  punishment  of  faults 
committed  in  the  course  of  past  existences.  He  sup- 
poses these  successive  lives  as  taking  place  in  one 
planetary  world  after  another,  and  the  other  celestial 
worlds  are  doubtless  vales  of  tears  even  as  is  ours. 
He,  at  any  rate,  views  them  as  so  many  purgatories, 
through  which  the  disembodied  soul  must  pass  before 
reaching  the  cycle  of  everlasting  felicity. 

A  little  later,  about  1872,  Louis  Figuier  expounded 
an  analogous  conception  in  his  work  "  The  Morrow 
of  Death  "  ("  Le  Lendemain  de  la  Mort  ")  ;  however, 
he  limited  the  theatre  of  the  soul's  evolution  to  our 
solar  system,  and  located  heaven  in  the  sun  itself. 
This  broad  notion  of  immortality  ranging  through 
the  heavenly  bodies  brings  striking  testimony  to  bear 
on  that  communion  which  must  necessarily  link  to- 
gether all  rational  beings,  though  separated  by  the 
infinite  distance  of  world  from  world;  and  some  of 
them  may  be  more  advanced  than  ourselves  in  the 
eternal  process  of  evolution,  but  doubtless,  like  our- 
selves, children  of  sorrow  who  have  hoped,  suffered, 
and  loved.  This  idea  influenced  Victor  Hugo,  who 
expressed  it  so  grandly  in  these  noble  verses.  He  too, 
he  says,  had  come 

A  croire  qu'k  la  mort,  continuant  sa  route, 

L'^me,  se  souvenant  de  son  humanity, 

Envolde  ^  jamais  sous  la  cdleste  voute, 

A  franchir  I'infini  passait  I'dternitd, 

Et  que  chacun  ferait  ce  voyage  des  ^mes, 

Pourvu  qu'il  ait  souffert,  pourvu  qu'il  ait  pleur^. 

Tons,  hormi  les  mdchants  dont  les  esprits  infames 


ASTRONOMY  —  THE  EARTH  203 

Sont  comme  un  livre  ddchir^. 

Ceux-lk,  Saturne,  un  globe  horrible  et  solitaire, 

Les  prendra  pour  un  temps  ou  Dieu  voudra  punir, 

Ch^ti^s  k  la  fois  par  le  ciei  et  la  terre, 

Par  I'aspiration  et  par  le  souvenir  ! 

This  same  idea  also  inspires  the  great  work  of  the 
distinguished  astronomer  Camille  Flammarion,  who 
has  made  the  doctrine  so  popular. 

Many  who  have  received  no  special  scientific  train- 
ing are  interested  nowadays  in  our  brothers  peopling 
the  nearest  planets,  Venus  and  Mars,  and  there  is  an 
important  endowment  awaiting  the  scientist  who  shall 
first  succeed  in  putting  us  in  intellectual  communica- 
tion with  them.  If  we  could  exchange  ideas  with  our 
putative  neighbours  in  those  planets,  we  might  acquire 
knowledge  of  a  decisive  kind  for  the  problems  which 
torment  mankind.  Unhappily  this  is  a  dream  which 
seems  hardly  realisable  in  our  present  state  of  knowl- 
edge; and  even  if  wireless  telegraphy  does  furnish 
us  with  a  hint  of  the  method  to  be  pursued,  we  cannot 
yet  even  foresee  the  means  of  arriving  at  the  desired 
solution. 

Nevertheless,  although  it  may  never  be  vouchsafed 
us  to  communicate  with  any  world  outside  our  own, 
we  can  say  without  great  rashness  that  we  shall  in  the 
near  future  be  able  to  make  a  decisive  step  by  an  in- 
direct means,  so  soon  as  we  shall  have  been  able  to 
obtain  pictures  of  the  neighbouring  planets  detailed 
enough  to  supply  us  with  material  proof  of  the  intel- 
ligent activity  of  their  inhabitants. 

As  this  forms  an  essential  point  in  our  study,  we 
think  it  will  be  interesting  here  to  outline  a  method 
which  we  proposed  in  1896  in  our  former  little  work 


204  FUTURE  LIFE 

on  future  life,  and  which  appears  to  be  capable  of 
leading  to  the  desired  solution. 

The  problem  evidently  consists  in  discovering,  in 
the  picture  of  the  planet,  indications  of  man's  handi- 
work, groups  of  dwellings,  great  works  of  art,  such 
as  roads,  highways,  or  canals.  Unhappily,  these  es- 
sential details  would  cover  only  the  most  insignificant 
area,  and  are  quite  invisible  in  the  views  which  we 
have  heretofore  succeeded  in  obtaining.  It  would 
therefore  apparently  be  requisite  to  construct  instru- 
ments of  observation  of  an  immensely  larger  kind. 
But  this  method,  although  it  has  to  be  applied  only 
in  a  limited  manner,  has  already  shown  that  the  views 
thus  obtained  are  entirely  lacking  in  clearness,  owing 
to  deficiency  of  light.  But  we  are  unable  to  augment 
the  quantity  of  light  received  from  the  star  under 
observation ;  hence  the  question  will  remain  insoluble, 
unless  we  are  able  to  discover  a  means  of  intensifying 
our  picture  by  an  artificial  process,  with  due  regard 
to  the  relative  intensity  with  which  the  different  points 
of  the  picture  are  illuminated,  so  as  to  avoid  modify- 
ing its  aspect. 

We  believe  that  this  difficulty  may  possibly  be  over- 
come as  a  result  of  the  researches  at  present  being 
carried  on  with  the  object  of  obtaining  the  trans- 
mission of  images  by  electricity;  that  is  to  say, 
with  the  object  of  constructing  a  telephotic  apparatus 
which  would  prove  an  admirable  complement  of  the 
telephone. 

The  results  already  in  sight  in  this  direction  en- 
courage one  to  hope  that  its  realisation  will  not  long 
be  postponed,  and  we  shall  soon  doubtless  hear  of 
images    received    in    the    despatching    station   being 


ASTRONOMY— THE  EARTH  205 

transformed  into  an  electric  current  to  be  identically 
reproduced  at  the  receiving  station. 

If  for  a  moment  you  are  willing  in  your  imagina- 
tion to  forestall  such  an  invention,  you  will  no  doubt 
recognise  that  the  same  principle  might  be  applied  to 
the  enlargement  of  images  of  the  planets.  It  would 
suffice  to  transform  the  faint  images,  with  which  we 
have  at  present  to  be  satisfied,  into  an  electric  current, 
amplify  that  current,  and  thus  obtain  an  intensified 
image  which  would  permit  of  the  detailed  observation 
necessary  to  supply  us  with  the  requisite  information. 

Whatever  may  be  the  value  of  such  a  method,  the 
practical  application  of  which  evidently  depends  upon 
an  invention  not  yet  realised,  we  consider  it  as  certain 
that  before  long  astronomical  observations  will  supply 
us  with  proof  so  irrefragable  as  to  force  conviction, 
although  it  may  remain  impossible  to  exchange  any 
communications  with  the  planetary  worlds.  When 
this  prophecy  shall  have  come  to  pass  it  will  become 
necessary  to  widen  the  actual  interpretation  of  the 
dogma  which  hitherto  has  recognised  terrestrial  man- 
kind only,  much  to  the  scandal  of  its  adversaries. 

Wishing  even  now  to  combat  such  an  objection,  the 
most  enlightened  of  apologists  do  not  hesitate  to  admit 
the  over-narrowness  of  that  interpretation.  They  rec- 
ognise that  that  dogma  can  no  longer  contradict  a 
priori  the  plurality  of  inhabited  worlds,  seeing  that  it 
unprotestingly  accepts  the  dethronement,  as  it  were, 
of  the  world,  and  even  endeavours  to  prove,  as  we 
remarked,  that  the  true  position  of  the  earth  was 
hinted  at  in  the  sacred  books. 

To  return  once  more  to  the  investigation  of  Scrip- 
ture.    The  apologists  cite  various  passages  which 


206  FUTURE  LIFE 

may,  if  taken  at  the  very  letter,  fit  in  with  the  doc- 
trine of  the  pluraHty  of  worlds,  without  overstraining. 

When  in  the  Gospel  Christ  likened  Himself  to  the 
good  shepherd,  who,  in  the  wish  to  save  the  lost 
sheep,  does  not  hesitate  to  leave  the  ninety-nine  others 
upon  the  mountain  while  He  goes  in  search  of  the 
stray,  He  had  especially  in  view,  say  the  apologists, 
mankind  on  earth,  and  consequently  He  was  possibly 
alluding  to  other  star-dwelling  races  of  man  for  whom 
there  was  no  need  for  the  Word  to  become  incarnate, 
because  probably  they  were  not  fallen  like  us.  Per- 
haps He  still  embraced  them  in  His  infinite  con- 
templation when  He  told  us  that  there  were  many 
dwellings  in  the  house  of  the  Father;  and  perhaps 
that  was  also  the  meaning  of  St.  Paul  when  he  taught 
us  that  it  had  pleased  God  the  Father  to  restore  not 
only  that  which  is  upon  earth,  but  also  that  which  is 
in  heaven.  Perhaps  he  wished  to  imply  that  the  bene- 
fits of  the  Redemption  accomplished  here  below  may 
spread  far  beyond  the  narrow  bounds  of  the  almost 
imperceptible  world  to  which  we  are  confined. 

Finally,  they  add  that  various  Fathers  of  the 
Church  from  Origen  downward,  St.  Augustine  for 
instance,  must  have  been  aware  of  the  hypothesis  of 
the  plurality  of  worlds  without  its  having  troubled 
their  faith,  for  they  did  not  even  recoil  from  the  weird 
idea  of  endowing  the  stars  with  a  conscious  soul,  the 
probable  destiny  of  which  at  the  last  judgment  they 
took  into  discussion. 

Whatever  may  be  the  interest  of  these  curious 
pieces  of  evidence,  it  is  undeniable  that  the  theory  of 
the  plurality  of  inhabited  worlds  gives  rise  at  first  to 
a  very  grave  difficulty,  to  which  the  Fathers  of  the 


ASTRONOMY— THE  EARTH  207 

Church  did  not  pay  very  great  heed,  but  which  none  . 
the  less  cannot  be  passed  over  in  silence,  because  it  in- 
volves the  interpretation  of  two  fundamental  dogmas : 
namely,  the  Incarnation  and  the  Redemption. 

The  Incarnation  of  Christ,  taking  place  in  a  world 
so  insignificant  as  our  own,  doubtless  proves  that  the  / 
Father,  in  His  infinite  goodness,  forgets  not  even  the ' 
least  of  His  creatures;    at  the  same  time  we  cannot  \ 
understand  the  reason  which  led  to  the  choice  of  Earth  | 
as  the  scene  of  the  divine  tragedy,  unless,  indeed,  that 
tragedy  has  been  repeated  in  like  manner  in  other 
worlds,  sinful  like  this  of  ours ;  if,  on  the  other  hand, 
as  children  of  Adam,  we  are  incapable  of  leading  a  { 
corporeal  existence  elsewhere  than  on  earth,  we  do 
not  see  how  the  blessing  of  the  Redemption  can  be 
extended  so  as  to  include  those  distant  humanities 
which  must  occupy  as  great  a  place  in  the  divine  love 
as  do  we. 

This  is  certainly  a  very  serious  objection,  which  has 
not  yet  been  completely  dispelled,  and  which  explains 
the  hesitation  of  theologians  to  handle  the  question 
of  the  plurality  of  worlds.  Yet  with  a  little  reflection 
it  will  be  recognised  that  this  is  no  entirely  new  objec- 
tion, for  all  it  does  is  to  aggravate  a  difficulty  which 
already  presents  itself  almost  as  clearly,  so  soon  as 
one  confines  oneself  to  the  consideration  of  terrestrial 
mankind ;  and  hence  a  single  explanation  will  doubt- 
less apply  in  both  cases. 

The  Redemption  was  consummated  upon  earth  at 
a  definite  point  in  space  and  at  a  determinate  moment 
in  time;  it  nevertheless  applies  to  thousands  upon 
thousands  who  were  already  dead,  who  were  then 
living,  or  who  were  destined  to  exist  in  the  future, 


208  FUTURE  LIFE 

all  of  them  entirely  ignorant  of  the  death  of  Christ. 
By  a  miracle  beyond  our  understanding,  the  Re- 
demption was  able  to  affect  mankind  in  its  entirety, 
born  and  to  be  born:  is  it  not  therefore  possible  to 
suppose,  by  a  legitimate  extension,  that  it  included  all 
mankind  fallen  through  sin,  however  situated  in  time 
or  space? 

While  thus  accepting  the  plurality  of  inhabited 
worlds,  in  principle  at  least,  latter-day  apologists 
maintain  that  it  is,  however,  merely  a  restricted  and, 
so  to  speak,  exceptional  habitability  which  is  in 
question,  involving  at  any  particular  moment  only  a 
relatively  small  number  of  stars,  and,  in  so  far  as 
concerns  future  life,  they  conclude  that  the  idea  of 
a  personal  reincarnation  of  man  in  these  planetary 
worlds  has  no  convincing  force  from  a  scientific  point 
of  view.  They  remark  indeed,  taking  their  stand  upon 
the  scientific  laws  themselves,  that  the  period  during 
which  the  stars  are  able  to  receive  intelligent  inhabi- 
tants, gifted  with  so  delicate  an  organisation  as  our 
own,  is  certainly  exceedingly  short,  almost,  so  to  speak, 
insignificant,  when  compared  with  their  total  dura- 
tion. From  the  history  of  the  earth  we  have  learned 
that  the  geological  epochs  anterior  to  the  coming  of 
man  represent  an  incomparably  longer  period  than 
that  of  mankind's  existence ;  and  we  are  aware,  more- 
over, that  from  the  moment  when  the  gradual  cooling 
process  shall  have  brought  about  the  annihilation  of 
the  human  species,  the  earth,  become  lifeless  and  inert, 
may  still  pursue  its  eternal  cycles  through  a  period 
infinitely  longer  still,  until  such  time  as  some  unfore- 
seen catastrophe  shall  destroy  it  in  its  present  shape, 
to  build  perhaps  another  new  world  out  of  its  ruins. 


ASTRONOMY— THE  EARTH  209 

Such  is  probably  the  history  of  all  the  other  planets ; 
and  we  thus  see  that  the  number  of  worlds  simultane- 
ously inhabited  is  more  restricted  than  might  at  first 
have  been  imagined;  consequently,  intelligent  life 
may  very  well  be  simply  transferred  from  one  planet 
to  another  and  be  well  represented  continuously  in 
time,  but  only  by  a  very  limited  number  of  different 
humanities. 

This  consideration,  which  in  some  measure  mini- 
mises the  dogmatical  difficulty,  cannot  at  present  be 
rejected  upon  scientific  grounds,  for  we  lack  the  nec- 
essary knowledge;  it  may  thus  give  support  to  an 
interpretation  acceptable  to  believers.  It  must,  how- 
ever, undergo  renewed  revisjon  if  ever  we  succeed  in 
winning  to  anything  like  precise  knowledge  concerning 
the  planets,  so  true  is  it  that  scientific  discoveries  are 
destined  to  find  an  echo  in  the  modification  of  our 
religious  and  moral  beliefs. 

If  the  Church  possesses  the  words  of  eternal  life, 
as  was  promised  by  its  Divine  Founder,  it  will  be  able 
to  show  that  its  teaching  can  always  be  brought  into 
line  with  well  established  scientific  truth,  as  gradually 
revealed  to  us  by  the  study  of  nature;  and,  when 
necessary,  the  infallibility  which  it  ascribes  to  its 
visible  head  will  always  allow  of  its  fixing  beyond 
discussion  the  dogmatical  interpretation  which  shall 
consecrate  the  compulsory  agreement  between  ob- 
served truth  as  formulated  by  positive  science,  and 
revealed  truth  as  determined  by  religious  faith. 


CHAPTER    III 

THE     PHYSICAL     SCIENCES. INDESTRUCTIBILITY 

OF    MATTER    AND    ENERGY 

The  Future  Influence  of  the  Physical  Sciences  in  modifying  Religious 
Beliefs.  —  The  Law  of  Indestructibility  applicable  to  Energy  as 
well  as  to  Matter.  —  The  Unchangeableness  of  Molecules  of  Living 
Matter.  —  Atoms  subject  to  Disaggregation.  —  The  Resurrection 
Body  conceived  to  be  Etheric.  —  Apparitions  also  Etheric.  —  Inter- 
dependence of  Heat,  Electricity,  and  Light.  —  Interchange  of  Energy 
between  the  Sun  and  the  Planets. 

IN  ages  past  the  physical  sciences  did  not  exert 
anything  like  the  influence  of  astronomy  upon 
religious  ideas  and  the  conception  of  a  future 
life.  But  the  case  will  certainly  be  otherwise  in  the 
future,  for  the  new  theories  to  which  those  sciences 
are  now  leading  us  concerning  the  constitution  of 
matter  and  the  mode  of  action  of  force  are  of  a 
nature  to  modify  profoundly  the  ideas  which  man 
has  so  far  held  upon  those  subjects.  They  will  con- 
sequently in  all  likelihood  throw  fresh  light,  perhaps 
of  a  decisive  kind,  upon  the  problem  before  us.  We 
therefore  think  it  of  interest  in  the  two  following 
chapters  to  summarise  from  this  point  of  view  the 
general  principles  arising  out  of  the  latest  scientific 
theories. 

iThe  most  cursory  observation  of  external  phe- 
nomena reveals  matter  to  us  as  in  itself  inert  and 


THE  PHYSICAL  SCIENCES  211 

incapable  of  finding  in  itself,  apart  from  outside  in- 
terference, the  principle  governing  the  ceaseless  trans- 
formation to  which  it  is  subject.  We  cannot  make 
of  it  the  sole  constituent  element  of  the  universe, 
and  v^e  are  led,  at  least  at  the  first  glance,  to  con- 
ceive a  dynamic  element  entirely  different  in  char- 
acter, which  discloses  itself  not  to  our  senses,  but 
only  as  the  result  of  a  theoretical  induction  based 
on  the  effects  which  it  produces  by  supplying  matter 
with  the  impulsion  in  which  it  is  lacking. 

The  universe  thus  appears  to  us  as  the  scene  upon 
which  two  antagonistic  and  irreducible  elements  are 
shown  in  action:  the  one  is  visible  and  is  called 
matter ;  upon  it  we  imagine  ourselves  to  possess  exact 
knowledge.  The  other  is  hidden  from  us,  and  is  force ; 
we  are  entirely  ignorant  as  to  its  nature ;  its  scientific 
name  is  energy,  in  the  strict  acceptation  of  the  word. 
This  rudimentary  notion  we  shall  endeavour  to  render 
more  precise  by  comparing  the  results  already  achieved 
in  the  physical  sciences,  and  by  showing  the  concep- 
tion which  each  of  those  sciences  entertains  of  either 
factor  of  this  fundamental  division. 

We  shall  return  later  to  the  question  of  the  con- 
stitution of  ponderable  matter,  for  we  cannot  deal 
with  it  before  having  first  spoken  of  the  part  played 
by  the  ether  in  the  manifestations  of  energy;  but 
we  must  insist  at  the  outset  upon  the  paramount 
importance  of  the  law  of  the  indestructibility  of 
matter,  which  is  at  present  universally  accepted,  and, 
indeed,  forms  the  groundwork  upon  which  all  modern 
sciences  are  built.  It  applies,  moreover,  to  energy, 
as  we  shall  point  out  later. 


212  FUTURE  LIFE 

We  know  that  all  natural  bodies,  despite  their 
diversity  of  form  and  superficial  appearance,  are  re- 
ducible to  a  small  number  of  identical  primordial 
elements,  and  merely  constitute  various  combinations 
of  these.  Owing  to  the  constant  application  of  the 
law  of  indestructibility,  these  elements  pass  through 
the  various  combinations  without  even  losing  their 
characteristic  properties,  and  with  the  means  at  our 
disposal,  we  can  see  no  possibility  of  creating  or 
destroying  the  least  of  their  constituent  atoms.  We 
may,  therefore,  regard  the  universe  as  being  made 
up  of  as  many  distinct  groups  as  there  are  chemical 
elements,  and  each  of  these  groups  as  being  com- 
posed of  identical  atoms,  the  number  of  which  must 
have  remained  rigidly  constant  since  the  beginning 
of  the  world.  The  history  of  each  atom  will  em- 
brace all  time  to  come  as  it  has  embraced  all  time 
that  is  past.  The  mineral,  upon  which  we  look  with 
disdain,  was  part  of  the  earth  at  its  beginning,  has 
played  a  part -in,  or  been  a  witness  of,  all  the  world's 
phases  and  changes,  and  will  last  on  until  the  final 
destruction.  Even  so  is  it  with  living  matter;  the 
carbon  or  nitrogen  molecule,  which  is  being  continu- 
ally made  to  take  a  part  in  one  of  the  thousand 
unstable  organic  compounds,  passes  through  them 
all  with  its  individuality  intact  in  spite  of  the  ap- 
parent destruction  which  overtakes  the  varying  forms 
of  which  for  the  moment  it  was  an  integral  part. 

The  law  of  the  permanence  of  matter,  considered 
as  indestructible  and  uncreatable,  is  found  to  apply 
without  exception  in  our  own  terrestrial  world,  and 
the  mechanical  considerations  by  which  astronomy 
is  ruled  entitle  us  to  apply  it  to  the  entire  universe, 


THE  PHYSICAL  SCIENCES  213 

which  we  are  to  view  as  being  made  up  by  the  as- 
semblage of  a  constant  sum  of  material  elements. 
These  elements  are  distributed  in  an  invariable  man- 
ner among  the  various  worlds  composing  the  universe, 
and  among  the  planets  forming  the  same  solar  sys- 
tem; for  the  interchange  of  matter  between  one  and 
another  is  impossible,  if  we  neglect  the  insignificant 
accretions  due  to  aeroliths. 

The  law  of  the  indestructibility  of  matter  as  we 
have  just  outlined  it  is  the  great  achievement  of 
chemical  science,  of  which  it  embodies,  so  to  speak, 
the  whole;  but  from  the  standpoint  of  the  physical 
sciences  it  must  be  acknowledged  that  it  calls  for 
certain  reservations  which  somewhat  attenuate  the 
absolute  rigour  hitherto  attributed  to  it. 

As  we  shall  see  in  the  next  chapter,  the  material 
atom  is  nowadays  regarded  as  a  complex  aggregate 
of  more  or  less  subtile  elements  and  as  having  been 
constituted  at  a  given  moment  in  appropriate  sur- 
roundings, since  when  it  has  undergone  all  kinds  of 
reactions  unchanged;  but  it  is  none  the  less  destined 
to  undergo  a  slow  disaggregation,  of  which  we  can 
already  see  the  premonitory  symptoms.  It  will  in  its 
turn  encounter,  but  at  a  distant  period  which  our 
imagination  can  with  difficulty  conceive,  that  final 
destruction  from  which  nothing  in  the  universe  can 
escape. 

Whatever  may  be  the  importance  of  this  rider,  the 
lav/  of  indestructibility  none  the  less  remains  the 
fundamental  basis  of  all  the  accepted  principles  of 
chemistry;  and  as  it  seems  to  involve  consequences 
which  are  of  particular  interest  in  our  present  in- 
quiry, we  shall  bear  it  in  mind  in  order  to  appeal 


214  FUTURE  LIFE 

to  it  later  in  conjunction  with  the  theories  connected 
with  it,  which  may  be  deduced  from  the  various 
sciences  of  observation  capable  of  throwing  light 
upon  the  question. 

We  may  remark,  however,  thus  early,  that  one  of 
the  immediate  consequences  of  the  law  of  indestruc- 
tibility is  a  considerable  modification  of  the  con- 
struction which  we  must  set  upon  the  dogma  of  a 
resurrection  in  the  flesh.  The  Christian  faith  de- 
clares, indeed,  that  the  future  destiny  which  is  pre- 
dicted for  the  human  soul  is  applicable  also  to  the 
body  inhabited  by  it  during  terrestrial  life.  Accord- 
ing to  the  tradition  preserved  and  consecrated  in  the 
Apostles'  Creed,  the  material  body  will  be  resusci- 
tated at  the  end  of  the  world,  will  then  rejoin  the 
soul  from  which  it  was  separated,  and  will  appear 
with  it  at  the  last  judgment,  sharing  thereafter  its 
eternal  fate  in  fixed  and  indissoluble  union. 

For  a  long  time  this  resurrection  in  the  flesh  was 
understood  as  indicating  an  actual  rehabilitation  of 
the  material  body;  but  gradually,  as  a  result  of  the 
discovery  of  the  law  of  indestructibility,  we  have 
come  to  comprehend  better  the  constant  interchange 
of  constituent  elements  going  on  between  all  living 
organisms,  and  we  have  consequently  had  to  revise 
our  first  rudimentary  interpretation.  We  have  come 
to  see  that  it  is  impossible  to  conceive  an  integral 
restoration  of  the  body  with  the  same  material  mole- 
cules which  composed  it  during  life,  for  even  those 
molecules  are  in  a  constant  process  of  circulation. 
They  only  pass  through  the  living  organism  of  which 
they  form  part,  and  at  every  moment  life  furnishes 
it  with  fresh  elements  in  replacement  of  the  worn-out 


TUi.  PHYSICAL  SCIENCES  215 

elements,  which  are  discarded  by  the  operation  of 
the  vital  functions.  The  molecules  are  constantly 
upon  the  passage  from  one  living  body  to  another 
or  to  the  ambient  medium  which  will  return  them 
later;  they  are  thus  continually  describing  a  cycle, 
as  they  go  from  man  to  plant,  from  plant  to  animal, 
and  from  anima'l  once  more  to  man.  Those  which 
at  the  present  instant  constitute  our  body  have 
animated  thousands  of  living  organisms  before  us, 
as  they  will  animate  an  infinite  number  in  time  to 
come  until  the  final  extinction  of  life. 

Strictly  speaking,  we  do  not  possess  the  primordial 
elements  of  this  body  of  ours,  for  all  that  it  may 
appear  to  be  our  own  particular  belonging;  we  pos- 
sess only  the  usufruct,  and  that  upon  a  very  preca- 
rious tenure.  We  are  as  unable  to  retain  them  in 
ourselves  as  we  are  to  stay  the  onward  movement 
of  fleeting  time.  It  therefore  follows  that  by  a 
resurrection  of  the  body  we  can  understand  no  iden- 
tical reconstruction;  the  resurrection  can  therefore 
affect  only  the  permanent  element  which  maintains 
the  existence  of  the  body,  giving  it  life  and  form, 
and  not  the  material  atoms,  the  role  of  which  is 
entirely  ephemeral.  This  permanent  element  we  can 
discover  only  in  the  conception  of  an  etheric  vortex, 
generating  from  minute  to  minute  the  movement  of 
life.  This  we  shall  explain  in  another  chapter. 
That  theory  supplies  us  with  a  scientific  interpreta- 
tion of  the  dogma  of  a  resurrection  in  the  flesh  that 
is  already  accepted  by  many  theologians. 

Perhaps,  as  we  shall  show  later,  we  may  sup- 
pose this  grouping  that  is  the  preservative  of  life  to 
be  able  to  manifest  itself  in  a  semi-material  form 


216  FUTURE  LIFE 

reproducing  the  aspect  of  the  physical  body,  —  a  form 
analogous  to  those  which  are  revealed  to  our  senses 
in  phantasmal  and  mediumistic  apparitions. 

We  have  seen  that  matter  preserves  its  character- 
istic properties  in  their  entirety  throughout  all  the 
combinations  into  which  it  enters,  but  nowhere  do 
we  see  that  it  contains  concealed  in  itself  the  princi- 
ples of  those  endless  modifications.  Scientific  obser- 
vation goes,  on  the  contrary,  to  confirm  the  notion  of 
inertia,  which  is  the  basis  of  all  mechanical  laws ;  we 
must  therefore  seek  in  some  external  cause,  —  either 
an  imponderable  force  or  an  acquired  movement,  — 
the  original  impulsion  which  it  cannot  give  to  itself. 
^  This  force  is  that  mysterious  element  in  nature 
which,  according  to  our  first  imperfect  notions,  is 
the  unseen  agent  of  phenomena  of  every  kind,  a 
sort  of  ever-changing  Proteus,  which  is  revealed  to  us 
by  achievements  of  the  most  diverse  kinds,  —  some- 
times by  work  performed  at  a  distance,  when  it  is 
known  as  gravitation,  sound,  heat,  light,  or  electricity ; 
sometimes  by  internal  action  which  it  effects  within 
bodies  when  it  determines  their  structure,  directs  their 
mutual  reactions,  or  causes  their  successive  decompo- 
sitions and  recompositions.  And  it  is  exactly  this 
element  that  we  must  discuss  by  considering  it  in 
connection  with  the  results  obtained  by  scientific  in- 
quiry in  our  own  day. 

Let  us  first  of  all  remark  that  these  manifestations 
of  force,  in  spite  of  their  superficial  diversity,  are 
bound  together  in  strict  reciprocal  interdependence. 
Recent  discoveries  that  serve  as  the  basis  of  the 
mechanical   theory   of   heat   establish    this    absolute 


THE  PHYSICAL  SCIENCES  217 

correlation.  They  show  that  any  caloric,  electric, 
or  luminous  action  corresponds  with  the  absorption 
of  a  certain  amount  of  motion,  which  upon  disap- 
pearing- it  will  wholly  restore;  or  again,  as  M.  Ber- 
thelot  has  proved,  it  finds  its  equivalent  in  a  certain 
determinate  chemical  combination,  which  will  again 
restore  it  upon  an  inverse  decomposition.  We  thus 
observe  that  the  manifestations  of  the  dynamic  ele- 
ment obey  a  law  of  indestructibility  analogous  to 
that  governing  matter.  Like  matter,  energy  is  neither 
created  nor  destroyed,  but  is  only  transformed.  The 
least  phenomenon  in  which  it  appears  under  any  form 
whatever  necessarily  entails  another  which  may  per- 
haps assume  a  different  mode  of  energy,  but  will  be 
its  absolute  equivalent. 

In  one  respect  the  indestructibility  of  energy  differs 
from  the  indestructibility  of  matter,  namely,  in  that 
it  is  not  limited  to  our  terrestrial  globe,  involving 
as  it  does  an  element  which  forms  a  single  homo- 
geneous whole,  filling  space  throughout. 

We  remark,  indeed,  a  continuous  interchange  of 
energy  between  the  different  worlds.  The  sun  gives 
us  its  light  and  heat,  and  by  its  attractive  force 
maintains  the  great  movements  of  the  atmosphere 
and  the  seas;  the  magnetic  disturbances  to  which 
it  is  subject  have  an  immediate  echo  upon  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth.  Again,  the  moon,  the  planets, 
and  even  the  nearer  fixed  stars  exert  a  weak  but 
perceptible  influence  upon  our  globe.  The  earth 
itself  is  constantly  radiating  heat  through  the  celes- 
tial spaces,  some  of  which  perhaps  returns  to  the 
sun.  Briefly,  the  consideration  of  the  dynamic  ele- 
ment and  the  laws  governing  it  reminds  us  of  the 


218  FUTURE  LIFE 

union  in  which  we  are  held  with  other  distant  com- 
rade worlds,  and  the  strict  dependence  of  our  earth 
upon  the  great  star  which  sweeps  us  in  its  train 
along  an  unknown  way.  This  notion,  which  must 
indeed  force  itself  upon  even  the  most  superficial 
observer,  occurred  also  to  primitive  man.  The  ancient 
Aryans  worshipped  the  sun  as  a  god,  and  very 
rightly  saw  therein  the  source  of  all  life  upon  earth. 
The  very  name  which  they  employed  to  designate  the 
brilliance  of  the  sun's  light  forms  the  root  of  the 
words  which  in  most  languages  of  Aryan  descent 
denote  the  Deity. 

From  these  various  considerations  we  get  a  clear 
idea  of  the  high  importance  attaching  to  the  law  of 
the  indestructibility  of  energy  in  the  general  economy 
of  the  universe,  and  we  shall  later  appeal  to  it  in 
conjunction  with  the  law  of  the  indestructibility  of 
matter;  to  the  former  we  shall  have  to  append  a 
proviso  analogous  to  that  we  have  already  made  with 
regard  to  the  latter. 

External  energy  acting  upon  matter  is  capable 
of  transformation,  but  can  neither  be  created  nor 
destroyed.  No  recent  discovery  has  invalidated  this 
fundamental  law.  Nevertheless,  we  are  at  present 
led  to  believe  that  this  external  energy  is  not  the 
only  energy  operative  in  the  universe;  for  our  new 
conceptions  regarding  the  constitution  of  the  atom 
show  it  to  be  a  reservoir  of  energy  beyond  imagin- 
ing, and  it  is  perhaps  destined  to  dissipate  this 
energy  as  it  becomes  disaggregated.  We  shall  not, 
however,  insist  upon  these  views,  which  are  perhaps 
premature  and  are  not  yet  generally  admitted  by 
all  scientists.     We  desired  to  mention  them  because 


THE  PHYSICAL  SCIENCES  219 

they  offer  a  very  striking  example  of  the  growing 
importance  which  attaches  in  science  to  the  consid- 
eration of  imponderable  elements  eluding  all  obser- 
vation by  the  senses. 

We  may  add  again  that  in  all  manifestations  of 
energy  the  law  of  conservation  insures  the  same 
quantity  but  not  the  same  quality;  and  we  are 
compelled  to  distinguish  certain  particularly  high 
forms,  such  as  motion,  light,  and  electricity,  which 
are  never  transformed  integrally.  We  can  obtain 
none  of  them  without  at  the  same  time  causing  the 
production  of  a  certain  quantity  of  a  low  form  of 
energy,  such  as  heat,  which  absorbs  a  part  of  the 
labour  expended  and  thus  represents  a  certain  wast- 
age in  transformation.  This  is  an  important  ob- 
servation, and  we  shall  recur  to  it,  for  from  the 
philosophical  point  of  view  it  involves  general  con- 
sequences of  great  interest. 


.CHAPTER    IV 

THE  CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  IN   MATTER  AND  ENERGY 

The  Nature  of  Ether.  —  Indispensable  for  the  Transmission  of  Energy. 

—  Its  Vibrations  rapid  beyond  Imagination,  and  connected  with 
Light,  Heat,  and  Electricity. — Its  Atoms  infinitely  Small. — The 
Vibrations  of  Rontgen  Rays.  —  Ether  is  the  Agent  of  all  Manifes- 
tations of  Energy.  — Essential  to  Matter  also.  —  The  Indivisibility 
of  Atoms  purely  Theoretical.  —  Electrical  Experiments  seem  to 
demonstrate  their  Complexity.  — The  Theory  of  Ions.  —  The  Com- 
plexity of  Atoms  confirmed  by  Rontgen  Rays.  —  Perrin's  View 
of  the  Structure  of  Atoms.  —  Revolutions  of  their  Constituent  Parts. 

—  Radio-activity  a  General  Property  of  Matter.  —  It  is  the  Mani- 
festation of  the  Internal  Energy  of  the  Atom.  —  Dr.  Le  Bon's 
Experiments  reducing  Certain  Elements  to  the  Colloid  Condi- 
tion. '—  Isomerism  and  the  Principle  of  Varying  Affinities.  —  The 
Oscillatory  Movement  of  Atoms.  —  Meta-elements.  —  All  Inert 
Matter  supposed  to  consist  of  One  Ultimate  Element.  —  The 
Return  of  Matter  to  Chaos. 

THERE  is  a  wondrous  medium  ensuring  the 
community  of  worlds  and  the  unity  of  the 
universe;  it  vibrates  with  the  sHghtest 
quiver  of  Hfe;  it  transmits  with  equal  fidelity  efforts 
which  pass  our  imagination  either  from  their  infinite 
greatness  or  from  their  infinite  smallness,  the  impul- 
sion which  keeps  the  world  revolving  in  its  orbit,  and 
the  simple  vibrations  of  heat  and  light.  This  medium 
is  the  mysterious  ether  that  the  ancients  knew,  created, 
according  to  Genesis,  before  the  sun,  and  now  dis- 
covered anew  by  science,  although  it  has  never  been 
granted  us  to  perceive  it  through  the  senses. 

It  is  upon  this  hypothetical  semi-material  fluid,  the 
atoms  whereof  are  infinitely  minute  when  compared 


THE   CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  221 

with  those  of  tangible  matter,  that  science  has  beenTTTJ^ 
obHged  to  fall  back,  although  all  hope  of  proving  its  . 
existence  by   direct   observation  must  no  doubt  be  ^^nt 
abandoned.     Science  does  not  shrink  from  ascribing  ryCiai 
to  it  properties  somewhat  contradictory  and  having  no    , 
analogy  in  the  material  world.     It  is  regarded  as  zxij^^^ 
imponderable  body,  differing,  however,  from  the  most  vL    ^ 
rarefied  gases  in  the  fact  of  its  being  incompressible.__/___- 
At  the  same  time  it  is  supposed  to  possess  the  elas- 
ticity of  the  most  rigid  of  all  solids,  seeing  that  it 
transmits  with  almost  infinite  rapidity  the  slightest 
vibrations  which  stir  any  point  in  its  mass. 

This  invisible  and  inconceivable  fluid  becomes, 
however,  a  necessary  agent  in  the  transmission  and 
transformation  of  the  various  modes  of  energy,  and 
it  is  only  by  supposing  its  existence  that  science  can 
really  succeed  in  explaining  physical  phenomena;  so 
true  is  it  that  the  mere  consideration  of  matter  is 
incapable  not  only  of  penetrating  the  riddle  of  the 
world,  which  will  always  be  beyond  us,  but  of  re- 
vealing the  immediate  causes  of  the  most  simple 
phenomena. 

We  have  therefore  recognised  this  invisible  fluid 
to  be  animated  by  a  motion,  the  most  delicate  shades 
of  whose  rhythm  we  can  represent  although  they  may 
attain  to  a  rapidity  beyond  all  imagining.  The  vibra- 
tions indeed  which  characterise  visible  light  are  reck- 
oned by  millions  of  millions  per  second;  and  this 
rapidity,  sufficiently  staggering  in  itself,  is  as  nothing 
by  the  side  of  the  speeds  which  we  have  been  able 
to  estimate,  in  which  the  millions  of  vibrations  per 
second  have  themselves  to  be  reckoned  by  the  billion 
and  the  trillion. 


FUTURE  LIFE 

We  have  been  able  to  calculate  the  rapidity  and 
determine  the  amplitude  of  these  oscillations,  and  in 
such  hypothetical  movements  we  henceforth  seek  the 
genesis  of  all  phenomena  of  this  order. 

The  undulatory  theory  created  by  Fresnel,  the  great 
physicist,  to  explain  the  way  in  which  light  is  propa- 
gated, has  received  completely  satisfactory  confirma- 
tion in  some  of  its  most  curious  and  unlooked-for 
consequences,  such  as  interference,  coloured  rings, 
polarisation,  colour-photography,  etc.  It  has  also 
been  applied  to  heat,  and  the  recent  experiments  of 
Herz  have  proved  that  it  holds  good  of  electricity, 
as  was  so  brilliantly  foreseen  by  Maxwell. 

The  study  of  Herzian  waves,  which  led  to  the 
discovery  of  wireless  telegraphy,  showed  that  elec- 
tricity is  transmitted  by  undulatory  vibrations  just  in 
the  same  way  as  light;  and  it  also  led  us  to  modify 
the  theory  of  Fresnel  by  the  introduction  of  a  new 
principle  certifying  the  absolute  identity  of  the  two 
phenomena. 

Nowadays,  indeed,  the  ether-vibration,  which  Fres- 
nel looked  upon  as  the  source  of  light,  has  lost  in  our 
eyes  the  character  of  motion  which  he  saw  in  it,  and 
has  become,  on  the  contrary,  simply  the  periodical 
variation  of  a  tension  or  electric  potential  which  we 
should  cease  to  regard  as  real  movement.  Thus,  in- 
directly, science  reverts  to  the  notion  of  those  im- 
material fluids  by  which  old-time  physicists  sought 
to  explain  the  manifestations  of  force  and  its  trans- 
mission to  a  distance.  Such  a  conception  has  in- 
deed been  re-adopted  by  several  eminent  men  of 
science,  such  as  Mr.  G.  A.  Hirn,  who  has  so  largely 
contributed    to    the    definite    establishment    of    the 


THE  CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER 

mechanical  theory  of  heat.  In  all  manifestations  of 
force  he  saw  the  action  of  an  independent  immaterial 
element,  revealing  itself  to  us  by  the  various  modifi- 
cations which  it  provokes  in  matter.  Ether,  which 
we  now  view  as  the  sole  vehicle  of  energy,  is  not 
an  entirely  immaterial  fluid,  since  theory  is  bound  to 
attribute  a  certain  volume  to  the  subtile  atoms  which' 
it  brings  into  play.  But  as  a  matter  of  fact,  that 
volume  is  infinitely  small  as  compared  with  that  of 
physical  atoms,  and  the  corresponding  ratio  forms  a 
number  beyond  all  imagining. 

The  diameter  of  a  physical  atom  may  attain  about 
the  ten-millionth  part  of  a  millimetre,  or  the  millionth 
part  of  a  micron,  that  is,  io~'^  mm.,  whereas  that  of 
the  ether-atom  is  expressed  by  the  fraction  io~^^  mm. 

At  all  events  electricity  is  now  regarded  as  an 
ether-vibration,  just  in  the  same  way  as  light  and 
heat,  and  the  difference  between  these  various  phe- 
nomena is  due  only  to  the  greater  or  less  rapidity  of 
the  vibrations.  Those  producing  electrical  activity 
are  much  the  slowest,  and  attain  only  a  rapidity  of 
from  20,000,000,000  to  30,000,000,000  per  second, 
whereas  luminiferous  vibrations  are  a  million  times 
as  fast.  We  do  not  yet  know  what  vibrations  cor- 
respond to  the  zone  between  these  two  phenomena, 
but  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  they  have  their 
own  proper  existence,  and  we  may  perhaps  some  day 
succeed  in  establishing  this  fact  with  certainty  by 
revealing  a  new  manifestation  of  energy  which  has 
up  to  now  remained  hidden. 

Thus,  for  instance,  the  cathodic  rays  lately  dis- 
covered by  Professor  Rontgen  should  be  apparently 
classed  among  ultra-frequent  vibrations,  that  is  to 


224  FUTURE  LIFE 

say,  beyond  the  violet  rays,  which  are  the  most  rapid 
of  the  luminous  zone. 

(  We  come  thus  to  see  that  the  ether  is  really  the 
necessary  agent  of  all  known  and  unknown  manifes- 
tations of  energy,  and  we  understand  how  one  can  be 
transmuted  into  another  by  the  application  of  the  law 

I  of  indestructibility^  According  as  these  vibrations  are 
more  or  less  slow  or  japid,  in  a  scale  running  from 
zero  to  infinity  (for  it  reaches  numbers  far  beyond 
our  imagination),  so  does  the  appearance  of  the  phe- 
nomena change.  First  we  have  electricity,  then  heat, 
then  light,  with  all  the  colours  of  the  spectrum  and 
actinic  rays,  and  far  higher  up,  we  have  cathodic  rays. 
Nevertheless  the  continuous  rise  has  by  no  means 
reached  its  limit,  nor  have  the  numerous  gaps  in  the 
list  yet  been  filled.  Yet  in  each  of  these  categories 
we  discover  this  same  unwearying  fluid,  apart  from 
which  there  can  be  no  manifestations  of  energy.  To 
it  we  now  appeal  for  an  explanation  of  the  trans- 

/  mission  of  actions  to  a  distance;  we  look  to  it,  as  it 
were,  to  materialise,  in  its  subtile  atoms,  the  invisible 
force  of  gravitation  which  maintains  the  planets  in 
their  orbits. 

It  has  been  successfully  shown  that  the  luminous 
ray  is  accompanied  by  the  exercise  of  pressure  upon 
the  object  illuminated,  as  is  proved  by  Crookes's  radi- 
ometer. We  shall  have  occasion  to  remark  that  the 
ether  atom  can  carry  along  with  it  electrical  tensions 
which  are  absolutely  enormous,  and  we  thus  under- 
stand how  the  integration  of  the  elementary  efforts 
thus  transmitted  by  the  countless  army  of  ether- 
atoms  might  enable  us  to  reconstitute  the  total  effort 
necessary. 


(  w 


/     THE  CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  225 

At  the  same  time  we  must  not  forget  that  these 
atoms  are  infinitely  subtile,  seeing  that  they  give  rise 
to  no  friction  along  the  path  of  the  planet  which 
they  maintain  in  its  orbit.  It  would  really  seem  that 
their  power  is  greater  in  proportion  as  they  are  fur- 
ther removed  from  matter. 

Briefly  we  may  say,  in  the  utmost  strictness  of  the 
words,  that  all  the  phenomena  of  which  we  are  cogni- 
sant are  direct  or  indirect  manifestations  of  the 
action  of  the  ether  upon  matter,  seeing  that  all  of 
them  involve  energy ;  and  this  dictum  holds  true  even 
in  the  case  of  what  are  apparently  purely  mechanical 
efforts,  as  for  instance  the  external  movements  when 
the  place  of  material  objects  is  changed,  or  the  in- 
ternal vibrations  in  dilations  excited  by  heat. 

Not  only  is  ether  nowadays  regarded  as  the  nec- 
essary agent  in  all  manifestations  of  energy,  but, 
besides  this,  it  is  the  present  tendency  of  science  to 
discover  ether  in  the  constitution  of  the  physical 
atoms  themselves,  so  that  this  hypothetical  fluid,  giv- 
ing rise  to  matter  as  well  as  force,  becomes  the  essen- 
.    tial  and,  so  to  speak,  the  only  element  in  the  universe. 

Up  to  within  the  last  few  years,  indeed,  the  physi- 
cal atom  was  looked  upon  as  representing  the  extreme 
limit  which  it  was  possible  to  conceive  in  the  division 
of  matter.  The  law  of  constant  proportions  testifies 
to  the  existence  of  such  a  limit,  showing  as  it  does 
that  chemical  reactions  always  and  only  take  place  in 
definite  proportions  of  the  elements  involved,  and  not 
in  any  chance  proportions.  It  was  therefore  con- 
cluded that  each  of  those  proportions  necessarily  con- 
tains an  immense  number  of  elementary  molecules,  of 

16 


226  FUTURE  LIFE 

which  it  represents  the  individual  weight  so  many 
times  repeated. 

All  the  molecules  constituting  a  compound  possess 
identical  properties,  and  each  of  them  is  formed  by 
the  identical  grouping  of  atoms  of  the  elements  of 
which  the  compound  is  the  resultant.  These  consid- 
erations show  us  how  the  physical  sciences  are  led  to 
the  notion  of  indivisible  atoms  insusceptible  of  de- 
composition. This  is,  however,  a  purely  theoretical 
conception,  for  the  atom  can  never  be  observed  by 
the  senses  and  cannot  be  isolated  by  mechanical  divi- 
sion. We  have  learned  from  experience  that  we 
cannot  by  microscopical  observation  get  lower  than 
the  one-tenth  of  a  micron,  or  the  ten-thousandth  of 
a  millimetre.  As  for  mechanical  division,  physicists 
generally  admit  that  the  diameter  of  an  atom  is  at 
least  a  thousand  times  less  than  anything  we  can 
attain;  it  would  thus  not  be  greater  than  the  ten- 
thousandth  of  a  micron. 

In  studying  gases,  they  suppose  the  molecules  to 
keep  each  other  at  a  certain  distance  apart,  varying 
according  to  heat  and  pressure;  but  under  ordinary 
circumstances  they  are  capable  of  expanding  them- 
selves to  probably  the  hundredth  part  of  a  micron, 
which  is  a  great  deal  in  comparison  with  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  atom. 

Albeit  mechanical  and  chemical  means  have  so 
far  been  unable  to  isolate  the  chemical  molecule, 
much  less  its  constituent  atoms,  this  is  not  the  case 
with  electricity,  and  the  observation  of  certain  elec- 
trical phenomena  leads  us  to  conceive,  nay  to  realise, 
the  isolation  of  fragments  of  electrical  atoms  and 
molecules. 


THE   CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  227 

When  studying  the  electrolysis  of  saline  solutions 
the  chemist  Arrhenius  succeeded  in  showing  that  the 
double  decompositions  thus  produced  could  be  ex- 
plained only  by  the  hypothesis  that  the  molecules  of 
the  dissolved  compound  were  themselves  decomposed 
into  their  constituent  particles,  not  otherwise  suscept- 
ible of  dissociation. 

These  particles,  which  Arrhenius  terms  ions,  are 
charged  with  quite  enormous  quantities  of  electricity 
which  in  the  compound  were  neutralised ;  but  so  soon 
as  decomposition  is  produced,  they  move  about  in  the 
solvent,  being  gradually  attracted  by  the  contrary 
pole  and  repelled  by  the  like  pole. 

The  tremendous  tension  of  the  ions  explains  our 
inability  to  dissociate  the  molecules  by  physical  means, 
for  we  have  at  our  disposal  no  instrument  sufficiently 
powerful  to  neutralise  the  immense  quantities  of  elec- 
tricity given  off  by  the  liberated  ion. 

On  the  other  hand  we  can  also  understand  why 
the  ion,  which  thus  moves  about  in  the  conducting 
medium,  does  not  behave  as  would  the  ordinary  mole- 
cule of  the  compound;  for  the  latter,  not  possessing 
the  same  electrical  tension,  must  of  necessity  manifest 
entirely  different  properties. 

The  theory  of  ions  is  nowadays  generally  accepted ; 
for  it  goes  to  confirm  the  primordial  hypothesis  of 
the  molecular  constitution  of  matter,  and  furnishes 
an  explanation  of  certain  anomalies  upon  which  we 
cannot  here  dwell,  but  especially  the  general  law 
discovered  by  the  French  physicist  Raoult,  in  virtue 
of  which  the  temperature  at  which  any  solution 
will  freeze  depends  exclusively  upon  the  number  of 
the  molecules   dissolved,    and   not   on   their  nature. 


228  FUTURE  LIFE 

Now,  this  law  does  not  apply  in  the  case  of  certain 
solutions  which  conduct  electricity,  unless  we  admit 
the  dissociation  of  the  elementary  molecules  from 
the  dissolved  bodies.  The  disruption  of  the  molecule, 
owing  to  the  separation  of  the  ions,  does  not,  how- 
ever, represent  the  extreme  limit  of  the  division  of 
matter.  We  can  push  yet  farther  down  and  shatter 
the  atom,  whose  inaccessible  minuteness  seemed  to 
protect  it  from  attack,  and  which  we  have  never  suc- 
ceeded in  isolating  any  more  than  we  have  isolated 
the  elementary  molecule  of  compounds. 

We  look  upon  it  as  a  complex  aggregate  built  up 
of  infinitely  tiny  fragments,  termed  corpuscles,  which 
are  as  it  were  atomic  ions,  for  they  likewise  possess 
an  excessive  tension  which  does  not  allow  of  their 
being  freed  save  by  electricity. 

The  hypothesis  of  the  complexity  of  the  atom  has 
already  found  confirmation  in  the  study  of  Rontgen 
rays,  which,  as  M.  J.  Perrin  has  remarked,  seems 
destined  to  change  the  very  foundations  of  physical 
science.  These  rays  emanate  from  the  negative  pole 
or  cathode  of  an  electric  current  passing  through  a 
globe  in  which  as  complete  a  vacuum  as  possible  has 
been  established.  They  may  be  compared  to  a  shower 
of  projectiles  negatively  charged,  like  the  cathode, 
and  consequently  driven  away  from  it  according  to 
the  general  law  by  which  bodies  charged  with  the 
same  kind  of  electricity  naturally  repel  one  another. 
The  eminent  English  physicist,  J.  J.  Thomson,  has 
succeeded  in  calculating  the  volume  of  these  hypo- 
thetical projectiles,  and  asserts  that  they  are  a  thou- 
sand times  smaller  than  the  atom  of  hydrogen. 
We  have  in  fact  to  deal  with  fragments  of  atoms, 


THE  CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  Sm 

infinitely  small  in  comparison  with  the  total  volume 
of  the  atom ;  and,  what  is  more  interesting,  all  these 
corpuscles  are  apparently  mutually  identical,  what- 
ever the  nature  of  the  atom  from  which  they  are 
thrown  off.  A  corpuscle  derived  from  an  atom  of 
iron  can  replace  that  derived  from  an  atom  of  alu- 
minium in  the  constitution  of  the  latter  atom,  and 
that  without  altering  its  properties. 

It  must  therefore  be  admitted  that  we  have  to  do 
with  a  real  disruption  of  the  atom,  from  which  new 
bodies  are  detached  which  are  really  intermediaries 
between  perceptible  matter  and  imponderable  fluids, 
as  was  already  explained  in  1897  by  Dr.  G.  Le  Bon, 
the  ingenious  and  original  experimentalist  who  suc- 
ceeded in  showing  radio-activity  to  be  a  general  prop- 
erty of  all  natural  bodies.  This  conception,  which 
was  at  the  first  very  much  contested,  is  now  admitted 
by  the  most  authoritative  among  scientists,  and  M.  J. 
Perrin  has  made  it  the  basis  of  an  exceedingly  inter- 
esting molecular  theory. 

In  his  view,  every  atom  is  to  some  extent  consti- 
tuted by  the  union  of  one  or  more  central  masses 
heavily  charged  with  positive  electricity,  and  these 
masses  keep  revolving  about  them  at  a  certain  dis- 
tance a  whole  throng  of  minute  negative  corpuscles 
which  complete  the  atom  and  are,  as  it  were,  the 
planets  of  these  microscopic  suns.  Tliey  gravitate 
indeed  about  the  central  nucleus,  describing  regular 
orbits,  and  this  motion  is  the  result  of  opposed  electric 
forces.  The  positive  tension  of  the  nucleus  by  itself 
balances  the  negative  tensions  of  the  planetary  cor- 
puscles, thus  reaching  the  enormous  value  which  we 
already  noted  in  speaking  of  ions. 


230  FUTURE  LIFE 

It  is  thus  comprehensible  how  sufficient  electric 
force  brought  to  bear  upon  an  atom  may  succeed  in 
detaching  one  of  these  minute  planets,  as  is  the  case 
in  the  production  of  cathodic  rays.  The  volume  of 
the  corpuscle  is,  however,  so  insignificant  that  the 
total  weight  of  the  atom  is  not  affected;  and  as  the 
positive  attraction  of  the  central  nucleus  persists  un- 
impaired, its  reaction  upon  the  remaining  corpuscles 
is  reinforced,  and  it  will  become  increasingly  difficult 
to  detach  any  of  them.  Our  means  of  action  will 
thus  become  rapidly  exhausted,  and  yet  we  shall,  so 
to  speak,  have  robbed  the  atom  of  nothing,  and  it 
remains  to  all  appearances  as  undiminishable  as  ever. 
As  to  isolating  a  positive  "  sun,"  that  would  require 
means  far  greater  than  any  at  our  disposal. 

The  atom  thus  appears  to  us  as  being  an  immense 
whole  forming  part  of  the  infinitely  small.  It  is  com- 
plex and  unfathomable  as  the  universe  itself,  and  is 
governed  by  identical  laws;  it,  too,  is  perhaps  con- 
stituted by  the  mysterious  ether,  the  molecules  of 
which  play  in  this  microcosm  the  same  part  as  do  the 
planets  in  the  universe ;  and  we  may  even  suppose  that 
their  revolution  about  the  central  nucleus  gives  rise 
to  the  vibrations  which  mark  the  special  rays  in  the 
spectrum  given  by  the  body  of  which  they  form  part. 

Thus  M.  J.  Perrin  was  able  to  determine  that,  with 
a  rapidity  of  one  thousand 'kilometres  per  second,  the 
rate  of  cathodic  rays  according  to  Lenard,  the  dura- 
tion of  the  revolution  of  a  corpuscle  describing  the  cir- 
cumference of  an  aluminium  atom  probably  lo"""^  mm. 
in  diameter  would  be  io~i^  of  a  second;  and  curi- 
ously enough  this  is  precisely  the  number  which  regis- 
ters the  length  of  vibration  of  aluminium  rays. 


THE   CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  231 

As  for  such  corpuscles  as  escape  the  attraction  of 
the  central  nucleus,  they  exert  upon  their  external 
surroundings  an  action  which  is  principally  mechani- 
cal or  electrical. 

If  they  have  retained  the  vast  speeds  which  they 
possessed  inside  the  atom,  they  dispose  of  a  con- 
siderable quantity  of  energy,  permitting  them  to  pass 
through  certain  opaque  bodies,  as  is  generally  the  case 
with  non-luminous  rays.  Their  mode  of  action  is  to 
bombard,  as  it  were,  the  opposing  obstacle,  as  may  be 
seen  when  a  fluorescent  screen  is  placed  in  the  pres- 
ence of  radium.  The  screen  appears  lit  up  with 
bright  specks,  which  come  and  vanish  constantly,  thus 
giving  indication  of  the  rain  of  invisible  projectiles, 
just  as  the  circles  formed  upon  still  water  often  show 
that  rain  drops  are  falling  which  we  should  perhaps 
not  otherwise  perceive. 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  corpuscles  upon  leaving 
the  atom  have  only  retained  a  moderate  speed,  they 
scatter  through  the  ambient  medium  and  act  upon  the 
neighbouring  molecules,  which  they  disintegrate  in 
their  turn  under  the  influence  of  the  electrical  tension 
wherewith  they  are  charged.  From  these  they  detach 
certain  fragments,  which  agglomerate  around  them 
and  constitute  the  molecular  ions,  of  which  we  have 
spoken,  thus  exciting  new  combinations  which  would 
not  otherwise  be  realised.  A  confirmation  of  the 
theory  has  been  obtained  by  exciting  the  formation 
of  drops  of  water  under  appropriate  surroundings  by 
the  ionisation  of  hydrogen  molecules;  and  this  ex- 
periment was  even  made  use  of  in  order  to  enumerate 
the  corpuscles  according  to  the  number  of  drops 
obtained. 


232  FUTURE  LIFE  n,'      ^    /TT^Za 

The  theory  also  permits  of  our  conceiving  the  mode 
of  action  of  radio-active  bodies  such  as  uranium, 
thorium,  radium,^etc.,  which,  as  is  well  known,  pos- 
sess the  mysterious  property  of  constantly  emitting 
luminous  rays  without  any  apparent  expenditure  of 
energy;  they  also  give  off  considerable  quantities  of 
heat,  as  has  recently  been  shown  by  Messrs.  Laborde 
and  Curie. 

Radio-activity,  of  which  the  initial  discovery  is  due 
M.  Henri  Becquerel,  constitutes  moreover  a  general 
property  of  all  matter,  as  we  remarked  when  discus- 
sing Dr.  Le  Bon's  experiments.  He  ascertained  that 
after  exposure  to  light  almost  all  bodies  are  capable 
of  emitting  rays,  simply  as  a  result  of  absorption,  but 
only  to  a  very  restricted  and  almost  imperceptible 
extent. 

We  remark  moreover  that  the  action  of  X  rays 
provokes  a  certain  ionisation  of  foreign  bodies,  espe- 
^  cially  hydrogen,  and  that  ultra-violet  rays  exert  an 
analogous  influence  upon  metals. 

This  general  conception  receives  new  confirmation 
in  the  interesting  researches  carried  out  by  M.  Blond- 
lot  upon  certain  bodies  subjected  to  stress,  especially 
metals.  He  ascertained  that  under  such  conditions 
these  bodies  emitted  special  rays  which  became  evi- 
dent from  the  power  to  increase  the  brilliance  of 
phosphorescing  calcium  sulphide.  M.  Blondlot  even 
succeeded  in  measuring  the  frequency  of  vibration  of 
these  new  rays,  which  he  termed  N  rays,  and  he  was 
able  to  show  that  they  occupy  a  place  between  the 
electric  and  luminous  rays,  a  region  as  yet  unex- 
plored in  the  general  classification,  as  we  have  already 
remarked. 


THE  CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  233 

These  various  rays,  whether  of  light  or  of  heat, 
may  be  regarded  as  true  cathodic  rays,  produced 
directly  by  the  throwing  off  of  corpuscles  but  weakly 
kept  by  the  attraction  of  the  nucleus  within  the 
spheres  of  their  respective  atoms,  and  which  thus 
appear  to  free  themselves  by  a  relatively  trifling 
effort. 

When  thus  viewed,  radio-activity  is  no  longer  the 
result  of  the  spontaneous,  and  so  much  the  more  mys- 
terious, creation  of  heat  and  light,  but  it  is  simply  the 
manifestation  of  the  internal  energy  contained  within 
the  atom,  —  the  transformation  of  the  mechanical  and 
electrical  forces  which  set  in  action  its  constituent 
elements. 

It  is  therefore  permissible  to  suppose  that  radio- 
activity must  in  the  long  run  appreciably  modify  the 
chemical  properties  of  the  bodies  which  are  affected 
by  it,  either  directly  or  by  induction,  although  the 
balance  is  unable  to  reveal  any  loss  of  substance  due 
to  the  emission  of  these  infinitesimal  corpuscles.  This 
is  actually  what  would  seem  to  occur,  for  M.  Curie 
thinks  that  radium,  which  is  always  found  as  a  chlo- 
ride in  combination  with  barium,  tends  to  become 
more  and  more  assimilated  to  the  latter  metal,  of 
which  it  constitutes,  as  it  were,  a  meta-element  of  the 
kind  we  shall  describe  later  when  discussing  the  for- 
mation of  elements.  Other  experimentalists  believe 
radium  to  become  transformed  into  helium. 

The  audacious  theory  of  the  complexity  of  the  atom 
has  not  yet  reached  its  definitive  form,  if  ever  it  can 
do  so.  But  we  do  affirm  that  it  furnishes  a  so  far 
satisfactory  explanation  of  the  mysterious  phenomena 
which  have  recently  revolutionised  science;    it  has 


234  FUTURE  LIFE 

sustained  the  test  of  certain  experiments,  namely,  the 
curious  and  unlooked-for  observation  of  Zeeman,  who 
succeeded  in  altering  the  appearance  of  spectral  rays 
from  a  given  luminous  source,  merely  by  bringing  an 
electro-magnet  to  bear  upon  it.  The  theory  which 
views  the  corpuscles  in  motion  as  a  species  of  electric 
flux  expects  them  to  deviate  under  magnetic  action, 
as  is  the  case  with  cathodic  rays;  and  the  change  in 
position  of  the  rays  of  the  spectrum  furnishes  an  ex- 
perimental confirmation  of  this  deviation. 

Let  us  remark  that  from  experiments  made  by 
Dr.  G.  Le  Bon  it  appears  that  certain  metals  can  by 
means  of  electricity  be  brought  to  an  extreme  state 
of  dissociation,  which  he  calls  the  colloid  condition. 
They  are  then  probably  represented  by  mere  frag- 
ments of  atoms  endowed  with  properties  entirely  dif- 
ferent from  those  they  normally  possess. 

If,  for  example,  a  three-hundredth  part  of  a  milli- 
gramme of  platinum  be  diffused  in  a  litre  of  distilled 
water,  and  an  electric  current  be  passed  between  two 
rods  of  the  same  metal  immersed  in  the  bath,  a 
coloured  liquid  will  be  obtained  holding  dissociated 
particles  in  suspense;  these  cannot  be  separated  by 
filtration.  The  liquid  will  act  upon  certain  bodies 
and  will  excite  chemical  reactions  merely  by  its  pres- 
ence, thus  presenting  a  close  analogy  with  organic 
ferments ;  and  as  if  further  to  justify  this  unexpected 
comparison,  it  will  be  found  that  this  action  is  imme- 
diately paralysed  by  the  same  reagents  which  arrest 
fermentation.  We  are  consequently  led  to  suppose 
that  these  infinitesimal  particles  are  nothing  else  than 
the  chemical  atoms  of  the  metal  thus  divided. 


THE  CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  2S5 

Let  us  also  add  that  certain  bodies  when  submitted 
to  minute  division,  such  as  would  involve  a  thickness 
of  less  than  a  thousandth  of  a  micron,  assume  new 
and  unexpected  properties.  Thus  the  soap-bubble 
loses  its  iridescence  a  moment  before  bursting;  the 
infinitely  thin  pellicle  of  certain  metallic  salts  loses 
the  electric  conductivity  which  it  possesses  during  its 
normal  thickness. 

Outside  the  phenomena  of  radio-activity  the  theory 
can  readily  be  applied  to  chemistry  also.  Here  it  per- 
mits of  the  explanation  of  the  facts  of  isomerism. 

If  the  molecules  of  certain  compounds  manifest 
different  properties  in  different  cases,  this  is  due  to 
the  fact  that  their  internal  arrangement  has  itself 
undergone  a  corresponding  variation;  the  same  ex- 
planation necessarily  applies  to  the  atoms  forming 
isomeric  elements,  as  for  instance  carbon  and  nitro- 
gen; we  must  therefore  view  each  of  those  atoms  as 
constituted  by  a  complex  grouping  of  lesser  corpuscles 
capable  of  distributing  themselves  or  of  gravitating 
about  the  central  nucleus  according  to  different  laws, 
all  of  which,  however,  assure  the  stability  of  the 
system. 

This  indeed  is  the  fundamental  conception  of 
stereo-chemistry,  an  ingenious  theory  first  imagined 
about  1874,  under  slightly  divergent  forms,  by  Messrs. 
Vant'Hoff  and  Le  Bel;  it  is  to-day  universally  ac- 
cepted. It  lays  down  the  principle  that  the  atoms 
of  certain  elements  must  of  necessity  be  represented 
by  a  figure  of  three  dimensions,  the  extremities  of 
which  determine  the  directions  along  which  they 
exercise  their  affinities. 


936  FUTURE  LIFE 

This  is  the  case  for  instance  with  the  atom  of 
carbon,  constituted,  according  to  Vant'Hoff,  by  a  reg- 
ular tetrahedron,  the  principal  nucleus  of  which  oc- 
cupies the  centre,  while  the  subordinate  corpuscles  are 
concentrated  at  the  four  extremities.  These  groupings 
thus  determine  the  number  and  form  of  the  molecular 
combinations  in  which  an  atom  can  take  part,  and 
they  constitute  what  are  termed  valences. 

For  a  long  time  the  theory  asserted  that  the  direc- 
tion of  these  valences  was  necessarily  that  imposed 
by  the  regular  tetrahedron,  but  Von  Baeyer  succeeded 
in  showing  that  they  could  undergo  a  certain  devia- 
tion, proving  that  the  constituent  tetrahedron  could 
therefore  assume  an  irregular  form.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  principle  of  varying  affinities,  which  like- 
wise forms  one  of  the  bases  of  the  theory,  teaches  us 
that  these  tetrahedra  do  not  necessarily  occupy  an 
invariable  position  in  space,  but  can,  on  the  contrary, 
move  under  certain  conditions  by  revolving  round  an 
appropriate  axis.  Again,  the  atom  of  nitrogen  gives 
rise  to  phenomena  even  more  remarkable;  for  it  is 
not,  like  carbon,  restricted  to  an  invariable  number  of 
valences,  but  it  possesses  at  times  three  and  at  others 
five.  Moreover,  two  of  the  latter  are  not  equivalent 
to  the  three  others.  Finally,  they  lack  stability,  espe- 
cially in  trivalent  nitrogen;  in  this  case  the  groups 
seem  to  pass  freely  from  one  nitrogen  atom  to  an- 
other without  the  intervention  of  any  external  chemi- 
cal energy  (as  do  the  corpuscles  of  radiant  matter), 
and  they  may  even  communicate  this  singular  prop- 
erty to  the  atoms  combined  with  them  in  the  same 
molecule. 

In  order  to  explain  these  facts  and  a  large  number 


THE  CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  237 

more  that  are  analogous,  stereo-chemistry  was  forced 
to  renounce  the  fundamental  idea  of  the  absolute 
fixity  of  equilibrium  at  rest,  thanks  to  which  it  had 
succeeded  in  conceiving  these  fragile  edifices  of  which 
it  regarded  bodies  as  being  constituted.  Nowadays 
it  admits,  according  to  Werner's  hypothesis,  that  the 
atoms  as  well  as  their  constituent  particles  are  ani- 
mated by  a  constant  oscillatory  movement  about  a 
middle-centre.  Under  certain  external  actions,  such 
as  heat,  these  oscillations  increase  in  amplitude,  even 
permitting  the  most  distant  of  the  corpuscles  to  pass 
beyond  a  certain  zone  of  attraction,  outside  which 
they  become  subject  to  an  external  preponderating 
action,  which  maintains  them  in  a  new  position;  but 
this  transformation  cannot  be  reversed. 

It  is  immediately  to  be  seen  that  these  new  con- 
ceptions, before  which  science  has  come  to  a  stand, 
unanimously  give  support  to  the  corpuscular  theory, 
according  to  which  the  material  atom  is  supposed  to 
comprehend  a  complex  aggregate  of  subtile  elements 
more  or  less  approaching  to  ether,  and  revolving  in 
an  incessant  gravitative  motion. 

This  theory  receives  yet  another  confirmation,  dif- 
ferent in  character  but  not  less  interesting,  in  the 
consideration  of  the  meta-elements,  due  to  the  emi- 
nent physicist  Sir  W.  Crookes.  He  shows  us  that  the 
actual  progress  of  chemistry  leads  us  to  recognise  at 
present  the  existence  of  certain  mineral  species  en- 
dowed only  with  a  kind  of  quasi  identity.  They  cer- 
tainly possess  real  differences,  but  of  a  secondary 
order,  as  if  their  constituent  atoms  retained  the  same 
essential   grouping,   with  one  difference   depending 


238  FUTURE  LIFE 

upon  the  movement  peculiar  to  the  elementary 
corpuscles  of  which  we  have  just  spoken. 

In  support  of  this  hypothesis  Sir  W.  Crookes  in- 
stances the  case  of  certain  rare  metals,  and  especially 
the  case  of  yttrium,  which  he  himself  discovered,  and 
which  can  be  decomposed  into  seven  or  eight  different 
bodies  which  he  terms  meta-elements.  These  pre- 
serve indeed  the  chemical  properties  of  the  metal,  and 
this  makes  their  distinction  very  difficult.  It  is  none 
the  less  necessary,  for  under  spectrum  analysis  the 
vapours  of  each  one  of  them  present  characteristic 
spectra,  in  which  we  see,  therefore,  the  probable  mani- 
festation of  a  special  vibratory  movement  of  the  con- 
stituent corpuscles.  The  same  phenomenon  is  to  be 
observed  with  didymium,  which  has  been  decomposed 
by  Dr.  Auer  into  several  distinct  meta-elements,  neo- 
dymium,  praseodymium,  etc.  It  is  also  the  case  with 
argon,  which  is  itself  more  inert  than  nitrogen,  and 
possesses  its  own  very  characteristic  meta-elements. 
It  is  permissible  to  suppose  that,  did  we  possess  chemi- 
cal reagents  powerful  enough,  we  might  decompose 
the  majority  of  those  elements  which  under  spectrum 
analysis  give  multiple  spectra;  and  we  thus  recog- 
nise that  these  bodies  are  not  exclusively  composed 
of  homogeneous  elements,  but  only  by  the  semi- 
homogeneous  union  of  atoms  closely  resembling  one 
another,  differing  from  the  mean  type  only  by  certain 
internal  vibrations  which  more  specially  characterise 
them. 

Under  the  apparent  diversity  of  different  bodies 
we  are  entitled  to  imagine  the  unity  of  inert  matter, 
and  to  suppose  that  the  numerous  elements  or  forms 
in  which   it  appears   were  constituted  at   the  time 


THE  CONCEPTION  OF  ETHER  239 

when  the  universe  itself  was  formed  by  successive 
condensations  of  one  ultimate  element,  a  sort  of 
primordial  ether  or  protyle,  which  agglomerates  itself 
little  by  little  under  the  influence  of  the  ambient 
medium,  just  as  protoplasm  does  beneath  our  very 
eyes  in  the  case  of  organic  matter. 

These  successive  agglomerations  must  have  taken 
place  in  as  many  stages  as  there  are  elements  with 
which  we  are  acquainted.  At  each  of  these  stages 
the  protyle  became  granulated  so  as  to  constitute  the 
corresponding  atom;  this  took  place  under  the  in- 
fluence of  the  immense  electrical  forces  whereof  the 
ether  is  the  depository.  But  these  formations,  deter- 
mined by  the  state  of  the  ambient  medium,  may  not 
always  have  taken  place  under  absolutely  identical 
conditions  of  temperature,  pressure,  potential,  etc., 
in  various  parts  of  the  universe,  so  that  they  gave 
rise  to  distinct. products,  to  meta-elements,  the  union 
of  which  only  apparently  constitutes  a  homogeneous 
element. 

Without  doubt  the  separation  of  these  meta- 
elements  is  frequently  impossible  with  the  means  at 
our  disposal,  as  is  the  inverse  process  of  the  transmu- 
tation of  elements.  But  in  both  cases  it  is  probably 
because  we  are  unable  to  bring  into  play  sufficiently 
powerful  electrical  forces  to  cause  the  dissociation 
of  the  atom. 

It  remains  true,  however,  that  In  their  search  for 
this  transmutation  the  old-time  alchemists  were  not 
pursuing  something  quite  futile,  seeing  that  the 
notion  of  the  complexity  of  the  atom,  from  which 
to-day  there  is  no  escaping,  leads  us  to  admit  as  a 
necessary  consequence  the  unity  of  primordial  matter, 


240  FUTURE  LIFE 

the  mother  of  all  the  bodies  with  which  we  are 
acquainted. 

This  is  likewise  the  opinion  put  forward  by  M. 
Edouard  Perier,  the  eminent  naturalist,  in  his  preface 
to  the  "  Dictionnaire  des  Sciences  et  de  leurs  Appli- 
cations." "  The  old  chemistry  of  the  elements  does 
not  remain  inactive.  The  comparative  study  of  the 
properties  of  elements  reveals  simple  relations  be- 
tween their  atomic  weights,  the  radiations  which  they 
emit,  and  their  melting-points,  —  relations  which 
permit  us  to  suppose  that  beneath  their  outward 
diversity  lurks  the  unity  of  inert  matter." 

It  is  at  once  clear  what  unexpected  light  is  thrown 
by  this  new  conception  of  matter  upon  the  final  de- 
struction awaiting  it  together  with  the  whole  of  cre- 
ation, and  we  can  understand  how  the  law  of  eternal 
"  becoming,"  which  determines  all  the  ephemeral 
manifestations  of  universal  life,  does  not  spare  even 
the  physical  atom,  which  seemed  able  in  its  unaltering 
immobility  to  set  it  at  defiance. 

The  law  of  indestructibility  governs  matter  in  all 
its  rigour ;  but  it  cannot  be  applied  during  the  limitless 
course  of  ages  unless  previously  receiving  a  modified 
interpretation,  which  should  admit  of  our  taking  into 
account  the  infinitely  slow  decomposition  which 
appears  to  affect  the  material  atom,  and  slowly  but 
surely  to  be  bringing  it  back  to  the  chaos  whence  it 
emerged. 


CHAPTER   V 

THE   FUNCTION    OF    ETHER   IN    THE   UNIVERSE 

All  Manifestations  of  Energy  connected  with  Variations  of  Ether 
Atoms.  —  Deductions  from  the  Laws  of  Etheric  Action  in  this 
World  maybe  extended  to  the  Universe  as  a  Whole.  —  The  Uni- 
verse believed  to  be  Finite.  —  The  Tendency  toward  Uniformity  in 
the  Distribution  of  Heat.  —  Gradual  Exhaustion  of  the  Energy  of 
Ether.  —  Arguments  against  the  Eternity  of  Matter.  —  Dynamical 
Transformations  in  the  Universe  Susceptible  of  Mathematical  In- 
vestigation.—  An  Infinite  Intelligence  would  thus  have  a  Perception 
of  the  Future.  —  The  Indelible  Trace  of  Past  Action  throughout  the 
Universe. 

IN  the  foregoing  chapters  we  have  described  the 
fundamental  law  of  the  indestructibility  of  mat- 
ter and  energy,  which  governs  all  the  manifes- 
tations of  the  physical  world  and  thus  determines 
the  history  of  the  universe.  We  have  further  at- 
tempted, in  the  light  of  the  science  of  the  present 
day,  to  discover  in  what  manner  we  can  conceive 
these  two  essential  factors,  energy  and  matter.  In 
both  cases  we  were  forced  back  upon  the  notion  of 
a  subtile  ether  or  invisible  fluid,  which  alone  is  capable 
of  furnishing  us  with  something  more  than  a  purely 
superficial  understanding  of  external  phenomena. 
.  All  manifestations  of  energy,  however  varied  they 
may  be,  can  in  fact  be  connected  with  periodic  varia- 
tions in  the  state  of  ether  atoms,  whether  they  are 
of  the  nature  of  true  mechanical  waves,  as  Fresnel 
supposed  in  the  case  of  light,  or  whether  they  are 
mere  changes  of  electrical  tension,  as  the  Maxwell 
theory  now  affirms. 

16 


FUTURE  LIFE 

As  to  matter,  we  cannot  attempt  to  grasp  it  in 
its  final  constituent  particles  without  again  being 
brought  face  to  face  with  ether.  The  complex  nature 
of  the  atom  may  to-day  be  regarded  as  quite  estab- 
lished, and  this  necessarily  brings  us,  as  we  have 
just  seen,  to  the  conception  of  corpuscles  more  or 
less  subtile,  resulting,  we  suppose,  from  the  conden- 
sation of  ether  atoms. 

When  we  push  the  analysis  yet  farther,  matter 
and  force  become  confounded,  and  the  only  effective 
reality  remaining  is  the  invisible  ether,  (in  the  study 
of  its  manifestations  we  must  seek  the  history  of  the 
universe^  These  manifestations,  which  are  those  of 
energy,  are  governed  by  mechanical  laws,  some  of 
which  are  known  to  us,  for  they  can  be  deduced  from 
the  study  of  the  necessarily  limited  material  systems 
with  which  we  are  in  a  position  to  deal.  We  are 
able,  in  fact,  to  predict  the  alterations  which  those 
systems  are  capable  of  undergoing  under  the  action 
of  definite  forces,  and  by  a  bold  but  legitimate  ex- 
tension we  conceive  the  possibility  of  extending  to 
the  universe  as  a  whole  the  deductions  which  we 
have  established  in  the  case  of  the  restricted  systems 
with  which  we  are  acquainted. 

It  will  doubtless  be  observed  that  such  an  exten- 
sion could  not  be  justified  were  the  universe  really 
infinite,  as  at  first  sight  it  appears  to  us  to  be. 
In  such  a  case  it  would  no  longer  have  anything  in 
common  with  the  systems  which  we  investigate  in 
mechanics.  We  shall  reply,  however,  that  this  ob- 
jection does  not  appear  to  be  justified  by  fact;  for 
almost  all  astronomers  are  now  agreed  in  viewing 
the  material  universe  as  a  finite  system;   they  assert 


FUNCTION  OF  ETHER  IN  THE   UNIVERSE     243 

that  the  countless  stars-  which  hght  up  the  heavenly 
vault  are  really  limited  in  number,  because  even  with 
our  strongest  magnifiers  they  always  appear  as  so 
many  determinate  points  standing  out  against  a  dark 
background,  and  do  not  form  a  continuous  luminous 
expanse. 

Since,  then,  we  have  to  deal  with  a  finite  system, 
we  are  entitled  to  apply  thereto  the  laws  which  are 
formulated  by  the  mechanical  theory  of  heat  to  meet 
such  a  case,  in  order  to  determine  under  what  con- 
ditions work  is  producible  in*  the  system  in  view ; 
and  we  may  seek  whether  it  is  not  possible  to  arrive 
at  a  conclusion  affecting  the  general  bearing  of  the 
history  of  the  universe. 

Now,  theory  informs  us  that  the  transformations 
which  produce  work  from  heat  cannot  be  reversed; 
they  are  necessarily  accompanied  by  the  continuous 
increase  of  the  quantity  which  mathematicians  term 
entropy;  that  is  to  say,  they  have  a  constant  ten- 
dency to  raise  the  temperature  of  cold  regions  at 
the  expense  of  the  hot  regions,  and  thus  to  modify 
the  distribution  of  heat  by  reducing  it  to  a  more 
and  more  uniform  level.  This  is  in  fact  an  appli- 
cation of  the  law  to  which  we  before  called  attention, 
according  to  which  indestructibility  governs  all  the 
quantitative  but  not  the  qualitative  manifestations  of 
energy. 

We  must  conclude  that  the  universe  began  at  a 
definite  point  and  tends  likevv^ise  toward  a  definite 
end,  which  will  be  marked  by  the  uniform  distribu- 
tion of  heat  in  all  matter,  which  would  effectually 
prevent  all  further  movement.  We  may  thus  con- 
ceive that  at  the  moment  of  the  creation  all  available 


244  FUTURE  LIFE 

energy  was  concentrated  in  the  ether,  which  from 
that  time  onward  has  been  constantly  yielding  an 
increasing  portion  thereof  to  matter.  The  energy 
is  thus  being  lowered  to  its  least  evolved  form;  but 
later,  when  speaking  of  the  vital  forces,  we  shall 
have  occasion  to  examine  whether  it  does  not  set 
free  some  higher  form  of  energy  that  operates  in  a 
plane  even  more  subtile  than  that  of  ether. 

To  us  the  universe  would  seem  to  be  a  vast 
mechanism  of  which  we  observe  only  the  secondary 
or  parasitical  movements,  the  friction  and  heating, 
so  to  speak,  of  the  bearings,  the  vibrations  trans- 
mitted to  the  ambient  medium.  Their  objective 
eludes  us,  for  we  are  unable  to  get  a  complete  view 
of  the  mechanism  or  to  discover  any  useful  labour 
which  is  performed. 

This  is  doubtless  a  comparison  which  religious 
apologists  have  already  long  ago  made,  but  nowa- 
days it  acquires  a  new  cogency  in  the  light  of  the 
present  notion  concerning  the  transformations  of 
energy;  for  we  now  know  that  the  result  of  those 
transformations,  as  far  as  the  material  universe  is 
concerned,  is  constantly  to  reduce  energy  to  its  least 
advanced  form;  in  a  word,  they  consume  it,  just 
as  does  the  mysterious  mechanism  of  which  we  spoke 
above  with  respect  to  the  active  organs,  and  like 
them  they  would  seem  of  necessity  to  collaborate  in 
the  carrying  out  of  some  hidden  design. 

Here  again  we  have  a  new  example  of  the  influ- 
ence which  scientific  discoveries  must  of  necessity 
have  upon  philosophical  speculations  themselves;  for 
the  idea  that  the  universe  is  in  an  eternal  state 
of    "becoming,"    that    it   started    from    a    definite 


FUNCTION  OF  ETHER  IN  THE   UNIVERSE     245 

beginning  to  result  in  an  equally  determinate  end, 
furnishes  us  with  a  strong  argument  in  favour  of 
an  initial  creation ;  and  the  views  which  we  have  just 
expounded  regarding  the  complexity  of  the  atom  and 
the  disaggregation  with  which  it  is  threatened,  also 
require  us  to  reject  the  idea  of  the  eternity  of  matter 
which  is  so  often  opposed  to  the  idea  of  an  original 
creation. 

From  another  point  of  view,  in  order  to  confine 
ourselves  to  what  concerns  the  history  of  the  uni- 
verse, we  may  remark  that  this  conception  permits 
of  our  imagining  the  mechanical,  concatenation  of 
facts  and,  therefore,  of  our  getting  at  one  and  the 
same  time  a  glimpse  of  the  future  and  of  the  record 
of  the  past. 

For  we  see  in  the  universe  a  fixed  quantity  of 
matter  acted  upon  according  to  very  definite  laws  by 
an  equally  fixed  quantity  of  energy;  here  we  are 
confronted  with  a  dynamical  system,  the  transfor- 
mations of  which  we  may  investigate  with  perfect 
exactness  according  to  the  mathematical  processes 
applicable  to  mechanics.  So,  then,  if  it  were  possible 
for  us  to  establish  all  the  formulae  which  at  a  given 
moment  represent  the  variable  state  of  the  universe, 
we  might  quite  well,  by  an  appropriate  series  of 
calculations,  deduce  therefrom  the  resulting  state  at 
the  moment  immediately  succeeding,  and  so  step  by 
step  follow  out  all  the  transformations  to  come. 

We  may  remark  that  these  calculations  would 
especially  involve  integrations,  whenever  nascent 
forces  intervened,  only  defined  by  the  influence 
which  they  had  exerted  during  a  previous  infinitely 
short  moment  of  time. 


246  FUTURE  LIFE 

Under  these  conditions  it  cannot  be  objected  that 
this  mechanical  conception  would  amount  to  nothing 
more  nor  less  than  a  real  determinism,  which  denies 
the  intervention  of  liberty  among  the  forces  consid- 
ered; for  the  working  of  the  formulae  permits  pre- 
cisely of  our  representing  by  arbitrary  terms  the 
limited  action  of  a  relatively  independent  force. 

The  operations  of  integration  introduce,  indeed, 
into  the  formulae  new  quantities  designated  con- 
stants ^  which  are  relatively  independent  of  the  pre- 
vious state  of  the  formulae,  and  of  which  the  value 
can  be  fixed  at  will,  within  very  extended  limits. 

An  infinite  intelligence  possessed  of  all  these  for- 
mulae representing  the  variable  state  of  the  world, 
and  capable  of  immediately  grasping  all  the  deduc- 
tions proceeding  from  them,  as  well  as  of  perceiving 
all  the  variant  forms  which  they  may  assume,  would 
thus  have  a  perception  of  the  future,  without  its 
being  necessary  to  deny  all  freedom  to  the  independ- 
ent factors  which  determine  it.  Thus  our  limited 
mind  can  conceive  how  the  intelligent  being  might 
acquire  a  progressive  vision  of  the  future,  whilst 
undergoing  a  gradual  development  toward  the 
infinite. 

Side  by  side  with  the  anticipation  of  the  future 
which  the  etheric  fluid  thus  contains  in  a  latent  state, 
it  also  no  doubt  preserves  the  complete  vision  of  the 
past  perpetually  inscribed  in  its  unceasing  vibrations ; 
and  we  can  thus  conceive  that  the  fundamental  law 
of  the  indestructibility  of  matter  and  energy  applies 
in  all  strictness  to  the  facts  of  the  past,  seeing  that 
they  leave  an  indelible  trace  behind  them. 

We  should  remark,  indeed,  that  the  least  of  these 


FUNCTION  OF  ETHER  IN   THE   UNIVERSE     247 

facts  has  of  necessity  produced  a  corresponding 
modification  in  the  distribution  of  the  energy  which, 
owing  to  this  very  circumstance,  has  recorded  it.  The 
luminous  ray  which  witnessed  it  carries  its  memory 
with  it  in  its  giddy  journeys  lasting  many  thousands 
of  years,  until  it  reaches  the  distant  stars,  and  an  eye 
placed  there  might  receive  the  image  as  living  as  at 
the  moment  when  it  came  into  being.  For  the  dif- 
ferent waves,  each  corresponding  to  an  impression 
given,  are  superimposed  in  the  luminous  ray  with- 
out destroying  one  another.  We  have  even  dis- 
covered by  means  of  the  curious  instrument  known 
as  the  photophone  that  light  could  carry  along 
with  it  a  mere  sound,  or  air-vibration  infinitely 
slower  and  coarser  than  its  own,  and  also  restore 
it  unimpaired. 

We  know,  moreover,  from  radiography  that  even 
darkness  is  not  an  insurmountable  obstacle  in  the 
way  of  this  registration;  for  facts  which  darkness 
alone  has  witnessed  are  also  recorded,  thanks  to  the 
operation  of  appropriate  rays,  which  can  traverse 
screens  apparently  quite  opaque. 

We  may  thus  say  in  all  truth  that  the  history  of 
the  earth  and  of  the  other  stars  is  at  present  scat- 
tered throughout  the  universe.  For  the  rays  which 
the  stars  have  emitted  in  the  course  of  ages  carry  it 
written  upon  themselves,  and  we  can  hence  see  that 
it  would  always  be  possible  to  find  a  solution  to  all 
questions  regarding  the  manner  of  our  earth's  for- 
mation, the  different  epochs  through  which  it  has 
passed,  and  even  the  evolution  of  mankind;  for  we 
might  recover  the  sight  of  all  the  great  phenomena 
which   have   exerted   a   decisive   influence   upon    its 


ll^K^ 


^^ 


248  FUTURE  LIFE  '}J^ 

"A 
(1 

history,  and  which  thus  acquire  capital  importance 
for  us. 

The  registration  necessarily  embraces  the  whole 
history  of  the  universe,  and  in  it  our  own  personal 
existence  has  its  due  place,  however  imperceptible 
it  may  appear  as  compared  with  the  immensity  of 
the  great  Whole.  As  we  remarked  previously  when 
discussing  Christianity,  it  may  almost  be  said  that 
we  possess  scientific  confirmation  of  the  line  in  the 
catechism  wherein  God  is  said  to  embrace  all  things 
at  a  single  glance  and  to  perceive  them  as  if  He 
were  present.  Again,  from  the  eschatological  point 
of  view,  we  have  an  explanation  of  the  mighty  scene 
of  the  last  judgment  as  it  is  described  in  the  mag- 
nificent words  of  the  Dies  Irae: 

Liber  scriptus  proferetur 
In  quo  totum  continetur 
Unde  mundus  judicetur. 

Quidquid  latet  apparebit 
Nil  inultum  rejnanebit. 

The  Book  of  Judgment  is  indeed  the  universe  itself ; 
it  is  the  incorruptible  witness  which  bears  somewhere 
in  its  immensity  the  ever  present  and  ineffaceable 
mark  of  our  brief  passage  through  material  life. 


CHAPTER   VI 

BIOLOGY. MATTER   AND   LIFE 

Living  and  Conscious  Force  amenable  to  the  Law  of  Indestructi- 
bility.—  The  Probability  that  any  Organic  Force  independent  of 
Matter  will  survive  the  Death  of  the  Organism.  —  The  Usual  Divi- 
sion of  Nature  into  Three  Kingdoms.  —  Man's  Place  in  Nature.  — 
Uncertainty  of  the  Boundaries  of  these  Kingdoms.  —  Life  the  Out- 
come of  Molecular  Affinities. — Apparent  Evolution  of  Inanimate 
Matter.  —  Internal  Movements  in  Liquids  and  Metals.  —  Phenomena 
that  seem  to  indicate  Memory  in  Metals.  —  Leibnitz's  Opinion  that 
no  Inorganic  Kingdom  really  exists.  —  Determinism  in  the  Cells,  or 
Plastids,  of  Living  Bodies.  —  Determinism  in  the  Vital  Phenomena 
of  the  Lower  Organisms.  —  Consciousness  govemed  by  the  Deter- 
minism of  Natural  Law.  —  The  Power  of  the  Will  subject  to  the 
Same  Law.  —  The  Freedom  of  the  Will  an  Illusion. 

IN  the  foregoing  chapters  we  have  given  an  ac- 
count of  the  great  law  of  indestructibility,  which 
watches  over  the  conservation  of  matter  and 
energy  as  well  as  over  the  conservation  of  facts 
themselves,  thus  dominating  the  entire  history  of 
the  universe,  in  that  it  permits  us  to  characterise  the 
course  of  development  of  that  history  and  assign  to 
it  its  inevitable  end. 

But  in  addition  to  these  manifestations  of  purely 
mechanical  energy  with  which  we  have  so  far  dealt, 
we  have  now  to  inquire  into  manifestations  depend- 
ing upon  forces  of  an  entirely  different  nature, 
namely,  living  and  conscious  forces;  it  will  be  our 
business  to  discover  in  what  degree  we  may  claim 
for  them  the  benefit  of  coming  within  the  law  of 


250  FUTURE  LIFE 

indestructibility,  which  has  so  far  been  universally 
respected. 

The  general  principle  can  evidently  give  rise  to 
no  dispute ;  (the  energy  w^hich  manifests  itself  to  us 
in  life  does  not  perish,  any  more  than  that  v^hich 
operates  on  inert  matter)  But  one  might  very  v^ell 
ask  whether  life  does  not  present  us  with  simple 
phenomena  of  a  mechanical  or  chemical  order,  the 
conservation  of  which  does  not  therefore  offer  all 
the  interest  which  we  should  be  willing  to  ascribe 
thereto. 

What  we  have  to  discover  is,  whether  by  the  side 
of  or  above  these  purely  material  phenomena  by 
which  life  manifests  itself,  we  cannot  trace  the  ac- 
tion of  some  force  independent  of  them.  We  should 
in  such  case  be  better  justified  in  supposing  that  force 
to  survive  with  its  special  characteristics,  and  hence 
to  preserve  a  certain  originality  when  removed  by 
death  beyond  the  perception  of  the  senses. 
(  If  this  first  conclusion  is  in  a  general  way  legiti- 
mate of  unconscious  vital  force,  much  more  will  it 
be  so  of  the  distinctly  individualised  forces  charac- 
terising the  superior  organisms  endowed  with  con- 
sciousness and  reason?)  We  are,  in  fact,  confronted 
by  the  problem  of  the  objective  existence  of  a  vital 
force  and  a  conscious  force,  and  any  solution  which 
we  are  able  to  arrive  at  will  profoundly  modify 
the  interpretation  which  we  are  to  give  to  the  con- 
ception of  sui-vival,  as  deduced  from  the  law  of 
indestructibility. 

Doubtless  it  may  seem  that  at  first  sight  no  diffi- 
culty can  arise  upon  this  point.  The  organism  which 
develops  according  to  a  definite  plan,  whether  animal 


BIOLOGYr— MATTER  Alff)  ZIFE  251         / 

or  plant,  differs  by  evident  characteristics  from  inerty^ 
matter,  seemingly  plunged  in  a  kind  of  eternal  sleep,  y^ 
incapable  of  development,  incapable  of  reproduction,  ^^™*^^ 
and  unacquainted  alike  with  life  and  death.    Between  '^z*-    ^ 
the  two  there  is, an  important  distinction  which  no    y    •// 
one  can  fail  to  recognise;    the  living  organism  evi-      / 
dently  possesses  a  distinct  force,  the  existence  whereof  ^-^^t 
we  cannot  deny. 

And  if,  limiting  ourselves  now  to  the  clearly  dif- 
ferentiated class  of  living  organisms,  we  seek  to 
define  its  main  divisions  according  to  the  modes  of 
vital  force,  we  immediately  and  unhesitatingly  sep- 
arate the  animals  from  the  vegetables,  —  the  plant, 
devoid  of  motion  and,  doubtless,  without  sensitivity, 
from  the  animal  which  can  manifest  volition,  pain, 
and  pleasure,  and  often  gives  evidence  of  marked 
individuality. 

In  the  human  species  individuality  goes  hand  in 
hand  with  intellect,  a  certain  power  of  abstract 
reasoning,  and  the  faculty  of  ^eech  possessed  alone 
by  man.  So  distinct  is  man  that  some  naturalists  ^ 
have  assigned  him  a  separate  kingdom,  for  he  ap- 
pears tO'  them  to  differ  as  much  from  other  animals 
as  they  do  from  vegetables. 

We  thus  observe  between  the  four  great  kingdoms 
of  nature  a  very  clear-cut  demarcation,  and  we  con- 
clude that  each  of  them  must  be  characterised  by 
the  intervention  of  an  appropriate  force  entirely 
peculiar  to  it. 

Such  a  conception  would  evidently  be  devoid  of 
all  difficulty  were  it  possible  to  confine  one's  obser- 
vation to  the  most  common  cases;    but  it  must  be 


S52  FUTURE  LIFE 

admitted  that  it  is  really  quite  impossible  to  define 
these  groups  with  precision,  despite  their  being  ap- 
parently so  characteristic.  The  frontiers  bounding 
them  vanish  upon  close  investigation.  ~^  Inert  matter 
on  some  occasions  displays  phenomena  which  we  at 
first  supposed  to  be  exclusively  dependent  upon  life. 
At  the  lower  extreme  of  the  animal  kingdom  we 
encounter  sensitive  beings  devoid  of  movement, 
which  are  in  many  respects  mere  plants;  in  the 
same  manner  at  the  upper  extreme  we  occasionally 
observe  animals  endowed  with  real  reasoning  powers- 
and  capable  of  supporting  comparison  with  certain 
races  of  mankind;  it  must  therefore  be  admitted 
that  it  is  possible  without  any  break  in  continuity 
to  pass,  by  insensible  gradations  covering  the  whole 
scale  of  creation,  from  the  humble  mineral  to  the 
most  perfected  of  human  beings. 

This  is  fact  which  it  is  to-day  difficult  to  dispute, 
and  we  are  hence  obliged  to  conclude  that  life  itself, 
in  all  its  manifestations,  is  but  the  inevitable  out- 
come of  the  same  molecular  affinities  that  govern 
inert  matter,  and  that  it  therefore  constitutes  noth- 
ing more  than  a  mere  chapter  in  the  history  of  car- 
bons, in  which  it  is  impossible  that  any  independent 
force  should  play  a  part.  It  may  thus  have  been 
seen  how  much  interest  attaches  to  this  fundamental 
question,  if  we  have  in  view  a  solution  of  the  prob- 
lem of  survival.  It  behooves  us  to  make  it  the 
object  of  minute  investigation. 

In  the  lower  manifestations  of  life  we  are  wont 
to  fix  upon  the  faculty  of  development,  or  evolution, 
as  defining  living  matter;  this  is,  however,  far  from 


BIOLOGY.  — MATTER   AND  LIFE  253 

being  a  sufficient  characteristic,  for  inanimate  matter 
can  itself,  under  favourable  conditions,  present  these 
marks.  This  is  especially  the  case  with  inert  matter 
which  has  already  undergone  a  certain  degree  of 
organisation,  as,  for  instance,  in  the  formation  of 
crystals.  These  latter  can  reproduce  themselves  under 
the  action  of  an  appropriate  germ.  If  a  piece  of 
sulphate  of  soda  be  placed  in  a  super-saturated  solu- 
tion of  the  body,  it  immediately  brings  about  the 
formation  of  a  crystalline  precipitate  which  settles 
round  the  nucleus  thus  supplied,  much  as  the  plastids 
build  up  the  tgg  about  the  initial  germ. 

It  may  sometimes  even  happen,  as  in  the  case,  for 
instance,  of  glycerine,  that  this  is  the  only  means 
known  of  inducing  crystallisation.  Till  within  the 
last  few  years  glycerine  was  unknown  in  this  form, 
and  the  crystals  with  which  we  are  to-day  acquainted 
were  obtained  for  the  first  time  under  purely  acci- 
dental conditions,  which  it  has  since  been  impossible 
to  reproduce,  and  they  can  be  prepared  only  by 
"  sowing  "  already  formed  individuals,  as  if  we  were 
dealing  with  a  living  organism. 

Further,  the  aseptic  precautions  which  prevent  the 
development  of  the  generating  microorganisms  stop 
also  that  of  crystals.  The  chemist  Oswald  demon- 
strated in  the  case  of  salol  that  crystals  of  this  body 
can  be  obtained  by  simply  immersing  in  the  mother 
liquor  a  platinum  wire  which  had  been  previously 
brought  into  contact  with  a  crystal.  If,  however, 
this  wire  were  first  sterilised  in  flame,  no  crystallisa- 
tion supervened. 

The  germ  employed  may  even  determine  what  kind 
of  crystals  will  be  produced,  when  we  have  to  deal 


254  FUTURE  LIFE 

with  a  body  capable  of  adopting  two  different 
systems,  as,  for  instance,  sulphur.  If  a  U  tube  be 
introduced  into  the  mother  liquor  and  crystals  of 
both  types  be  then  placed  in  it,  one  in  each  branch, 
two  distinct  crystalline  deposits  will  be  produced  in 
the  same  liquid. 

We  may  add  that  besides  this  production  by  gem- 
mation, the  crystal  is  also  akin  to  living  matter  in 
its  manner  of  growth.  The  crystal  increases  its 
volume  according  to  a  determinate  plan.  When 
steeped  in  an  appropriate  mother  liquor,  it  can  repair 
any  breaches  by  inducing  matter  to  deposit  where 
it  is  required  in  order  to  reestablish  the  integrity  of 
its  form.  It  can  even  feed  itself,  so  to  speak,  in 
liquid  whose  chemical  constitution  is  slightly  different 
from  its  own,  if  that  liquid  produces  the  same  crys- 
talline system. 

But  if  we  now  abandon  crystals  that  owe  some 
of  their  lifelike  appearance  to  their  organisation,  and 
if  we  examine  inert  matter  generally,  we  are  forced 
to  admit  that  the  immobility  which  we  attribute  to 
it  is  often  merely  illusory,  and  the  rigid  surface  of 
a  metallic  bar  may  often  hide  internal  movements 
such  as  we  should  at  first  be  far  from  suspecting. 

Micrographical  research  has  brought  about  revela- 
tions upon  this  point  of  a  completely  unlooked-for 
kind.  The  observer  who  applies  a  powerful  micro- 
scope to  the  study  of  a  drop  of  liquid,  or  to  the 
rigid  section  of  a  piece  of  metal,  will  be  astonished 
to  discover  traces  of  an  activity  which  seemed  pro- 
hibited to  inanimate  matter. 

In  the  first  case  he  can  watch  infinkely  small 
particles    constantly    moving    about    in    the    liquid; 


BIOLOGY,  — MATTER   AND  LIFE  255 

they  are  probably  organic  detritus,  but  not  living 
micro-organisms.  They  move,  however,  as  if  en- 
dowed with  life.  This  is  the  well-known  Brownian 
movement,  which  seems  to  be  self-maintained  and  is 
at  all  events  perpetual.  It  is  common  to  all  liquids, 
whatever  their  degree  of  acidity,  so  long  as  they  are 
sufficiently  fluid;  it  is  also  to  be  found  in  gaseous 
bubbles  such  as  those  contained  in  the  laminae  of 
quartz,  and  it  may  be  viewed  as  constituting  the  first 
manifestation  accessible  to  our  senses  of  those  hypo- 
thetical molecular  movements  postulated  in  latter-day 
theories  of  matter. 

Upon  investigating  the  internal  constitution  of 
metals  we  come  across  analogous  phenomena,  which 
are  no  less  extraordinary.  In  the  place  of  that  rigid 
homogeneity  which  we  were  entitled  to  expect,  the 
microscope  reveals  to  us,  on  the  contrary,  a  complex 
organism  of  nticlei  and  cells,  including  variable  ag- 
gregates, capable  of  mutual  reactions;  capable,  that 
is,  of  modifying  themselves  and  in  a  certain  measure 
of  transforming  themselves;  they  are  also  able  to 
bring  about  certain  displacements  of  the  elementary 
molecules  with  the  object  of  reacting  upon  the  am- 
bient medium,  much  in  the  same  way  as  would  a 
living  organism  when  seeking  to  defend  itself  against 
destructive  agents. 

In  ordinary  steels  it  is  the  carbon  molecule  which 
passes  from  the  combined  to  the  dissolved  state,  the 
original  iron  undergoing  allotropic  transformations 
which  completely  alter  all  its  properties;  and  these 
modifications  are  produced  not  only  in  the  metal 
raised  to  a  very  high  temperature,  when  it  ac- 
quires a  certain  plasticity  that  permits  the  relative 


256  FUTURE  LIFE 

displacement  of  the  elementary  molecules  forced 
back  under  the  irresistible  action  of  powerful  forge- 
machinery,  but  they  also  appear,  sometimes  more 
and  sometimes  less  accentuated,  but  always  percep- 
tible at  least  under  the  microscope,  in  any  case 
when  the  piece  is  under  stress. 

If,  for  example,  it  be  submitted  to  a  tensile  stress 
a  constriction  appears  at  the  weakest  point,  and  this 
would  result  in  a  rupture,  were  it  not  that  the  metal 
reacted  in  some  way  to  protect  the  threatened  section. 
The  resistance  at  this  point  immediately  becomes 
stronger  as  a  result  of  internal  transformations,  and 
the  constriction  ceases,  in  order  to  reappear  at  some 
other  point  now  become  the  weakest  in  turn;  this 
part  again  reacts  in  a  similar  manner,  so  that  the 
constriction  passes  along  the  whole  length  of  the  test- 
piece  until  it  becomes  finally  localised  at  some  par- 
ticular point,  which  will  remain  the  weakest  until  the 
rupture. 

Not  that  the  metallic  organism  does  not  make  an 
energetic  effort,  which  M.  C.  E.  Guillaume,  the  emi- 
nent experimentalist,  unhesitatingly  qualifies  as  he- 
roic, to  protect  the  threatened  point.  It  concentrates 
upon  it  all  available  means  of  resistance;  and  if  the 
experiment  be  interrupted  before  the  breaking-point 
is  reached,  but  when  the  local  constriction  that  pre- 
cedes rupture  is  strongly  marked,  and  if  the  experi- 
ment then  be  renewed  after  the  test-piece  has  been 
passed  through  the  roller  and  reduced  along  its  whole 
length  to  the  diameter  of  the  constriction,  it  will  be 
discovered  that  what  was  formerly  the  threatened 
point  of  rupture  is  now  on  the  contrary  the  most 
resistant   point   in    the    whole    test-piece;    and   new 


BIOLOGY.— MATTER  AND  LIFE  257 

constrictions  appear  elsewhere,  proving  that  the 
metalHc  organism  was  able  to  reinforce  the  region 
attacked  just  as  a  living  organism  might  have  done. 

These  profound  transformations  are  necessarily 
accompanied  by  certain  displacements  of  the  con- 
stituent molecules,  taking  place  in  the  depths  of  this 
rigid  medium.  We  can  even  remark  that  they  still 
persist  even  after  the  stress  which  provoked  them  has 
ceased  to  be  active;  and  as  a  matter  of  fact,  a  metal 
bar  which  has  undergone  an  elastic  deformation  may 
sometimes  take  several  years  in  returning  to  its  orig- 
inal dimensions,  even  if  it  should  ever  return  to  them ; 
for  the  period  of  complete  repose  seems  to  recede 
continually  in  proportion  as  our  apparatus  for  obser- 
vation becomes  more  exact. 

This  incessant  displacement  is  carried  on  even 
apart  from  any  attempt  at  special  deformation;  and 
the  experiments  of  Mr.  Robert  Austen,  confirmed  by 
those  of  Dr.  Le  Bon,  have  shown  that  at  a  tem- 
perature of  only  a  hundred  degrees  centigrade,  and 
sometimes  even  at  the  ordinary  temperature,  gold  can 
become  diffused  into  platinum  or  lead  by  the  simple 
contact  of  the  two  metals,  (so  true  is  it  that  equili- 
brium and  repose  exist  nowhere  in  the  universe,  and 
that  they  are  as  unknown  to  inert  matter  as  they  are 
in  the  living  world?) 

We  succeeded  in  showing  in  a  preceding  chapter 
that  the  atom  no  doubt  conceals  beneath  its  apparent 
immobility  internal  movements  of  an  exceedingly 
complex  description,  and  stores  of  energy  which  we 
can  with  difficulty  imagine.  We  demonstrated,  more- 
over, that  the  atoms  of  certain  elements,  when  brought 
to  the  colloid  state,  which  is  doubtless  one  of  actual 

17 


258  FUTURE  LIFE 

disintegration,  assume  new  properties  of  a  most 
strange  kind  and  very  much  recalling  those  of  organic 
ferments.  We  must  therefore  recognise  that  absolute 
immutability  is  not  an  exclusive  character  to  which 
we  may  look  as  the  fundamental  distinction  between 
the  kingdom  of  living  as  opposed  to  that  of  inert 
matter. 

Further,  it  has  been  reasonably  maintained  that 
memory  itself,  which  would  certainly  appear  to  be 
an  exclusive  attribute  of  higher  organic  life,  is  not 
totally  unknown  to  inert  matter,  and  we  know  indeed 
of  certain  metallic  alloys  which,  when  brought  to  a 
determinate  state,  present,  nevertheless,  different 
qualities  according  to  the  cycle  of  operations  through 
which  they  have  passed  to  attain  that  state.  This  is 
an  application  of  that  curious  property  designated  by 
physicists  as  hysteresis. 

Again,  the  magnetic  thread  of  a  Poulsen  phono- 
graph retains  absolutely  imperceptible  magnetic  im- 
pressions, thanks  to  which  it  will  reproduce  without 
error  through  the  medium  of  a  vibrating  plate  the 
series  of  words  once  heard  by  it,  so  true  is  it  that 
inert  matter  also  possesses  a  history  which  it  does 

not^forget.  f'^'^/^^C^iM^f  >/ 

If  we  now  endeavour  to  denne  the  class  of  hvmg 
organisms  by  some  other  characteristic  which  it  alone 
exclusively  possesses,  we  shall  always  encounter  the 
same  persistent  difficulty.  For,  the  better  we  study 
the  question,  the  more  certainly  shall  we  find  the  same 
identical  laws  applying  equally  in  both  kingdoms; 
and  we  come  back  to  the  famous  dictum  of  Leib- 
nitz, according  to  which  no  inorganic  kingdom  really 
exists;  the  whole  universe  must,   on   the  contrary, 


BIOLOGY.— MATTER  AND  LIFE  259 

be  conceived  as  a  living  organism  manifesting  itself 
only  under  more  or  less  complex  forms,  which  we 
are  pleased  to  term  mineral,  vegetable,  or  animal. 

The  living  cells,  or  plastids,  which  are  the  neces- 
sary elements  of  all  living  beings,  are  themselves 
formed  of  complex  molecules,  —  agglomerations  of 
atoms  of  carbon,  hydrogen,  oxygen,  and  nitrogen,  — 
possessed  of  no  other  properties  than  those  assigned 
to  them  by  inorganic  chemistry,  and  the  organised 
bodies  which  they  are  at  every  instant  elaborating 
are  precisely  the  same  as  those  which  inorganic 
chemistry  can  nowadays  produce. 

Under  the  influence  of  the  ambient  medium  the 
plastid  reacts  in  an  inevitable  manner,  which  it  is 
possible  to  predict.  We  can,  for  instance,  foresee  by 
reasoning  or  calculation,  says  M.  F.  Le  Dantec,  what 
influence  such  and  such  an  extraneous  factor,  as 
electricity,  heat,  light,  or  a  chemical  reagent,  acting 
upon  a  given  plastid,  will  exert  upon  its  ulterior 
development.  This  leads  us  to  imagine  that  such 
development  is  entirely  the  outcome  of  internal  re- 
actions thus  set  up  within  the  organised  cell. 

Starting  with  the  fact,  which  to  him  seems  well 
established,  that  the  life  of  the  plastid  is  governed, 
from  the  physiological  point  of  view,  by  a  deter- 
minism as  vigorous  as  that  governing  inert  matter, 
M.  Le  Dantec  considers  himself  in  a  position  to  draw 
conclusions  of  the  gravest  importance  as  far  as  the 
higher  animals  are  concerned. 

If  we  proceed  upwards,  he  says,  in  the  scale  of 
living  organisms  starting  from  the  protozoans,  we 
shall  observe  the  vital  manifestations  growing  little 
by    little    more    complicated    in    proportion    as    the 


260  FUTURE  LIFE 

number  and  differentiation  of  the  plastids  constituting 
the  bodies  of  the  corresponding  animals  increase,  and 
we  are  forced  throughout  our  ascending  investiga- 
tions to  consider  the  vital  phenomena  as  determined. 
We  must  therefore  conclude  that,  if  these  animals  are 
conscious,  we  have  not  the  right  to  accord  them  any- 
thing but  a  simple  onlooking  consciousness  incapable 
of  all  initiative  or  directive  power^  —  the  sole  con- 
sciousness, in  fact,  which  we  can  ascribe  to  the  elemen- 
tary plastid ;  for  we  have  ascertained  that  it  forcedly 
obeys  all  external  influences,  the  struggle  between 
which  it  can  view  at  the  most  as  a  passive  spectator 
unable  to  exert  any  will  or  make  any  impression. 

At  the  summit  of  this  life-scale  man  sees  himself. 
Doubtless  he  feels  that  he  is  endowed  with  conscious- 
ness. But  the  strictness  of  the  connection  linking 
together  all  the  terms  of  the  series  obliges  us  to  con- 
clude that  this  consciousness  can  possess  no  faculty 
denied  to  that  of  other  animals,  if  indeed  it  exists. 

In  their  case  we  cannot  verify  the  existence  of  this 
consciousness,  but  we  know  that  of  necessity  it  is 
inert,  as  is  the  case  with  the  plastid.  We  must 
conclude  that  the  same  holds  good  of  the  human 
consciousness.  (T^t  is  but  a  mere  epiphenomenon  con- 
nected with  the  facts  of  which  it  is  the  spectator ;  for 
our  acts  are  solely  the  necessary  consequence  of  the 
evolution  of  our  being,  which  in  its  turn  is  governed, 
like  everything  else  in  the  universe,  by  the  deter- 
minism of  the  natural  laws!!)  Be  it  remarked,  indeed, 
that  the  large  majority  of  those  acts  are  of  a  purely 
instinctive  kind ;  that  is  to  say,  they  are  the  involun- 
tary response  of  the  organism  when  actuated  by  stim- 
ulation from  the  external  surroundings.    An  outside 


BIOLOGY.  — MATTER  AND  LIFE  261 

observer  may  therefore  predict  them  as  he  does  a 
chemical  reaction  the  constituent  factors  of  which 
he  has  previously  measured. 

It  is  doubtless  not  quite  the  same  when  we  have  to 
deal  with  non-instinctive  acts,  wherein  volition  seems 
to  play  a  part.  But  this  is  merely  an  apparent  differ- 
ence, depending  upon  the  fact  that  a  sensation  re- 
ceived can  stimulate  several  possible  reactions  between 
which  it  appears  to  choose.  As  a  matter  of  fact  this 
choice  is  no  more  voluntary  than  is  that  of  an  electric 
current  passing  between  two  points  connected  to- 
gether by  a  great  number  of  tangled  conducting  wires. 
It  is  impossible  for  us  to  predict  the  exact  line  which 
the  current  will  follow,  for  it  would  be  necessary  to 
know  the  exact  resistance  of  each  of  the  intermediate 
elements ;  but  the  fact  of  our  ignorance  does  not  pre- 
vent the  current  making  an  immediate,  unhesitating, 
and  unerring  choice. 

The  same  holds  good  of  organic  life  in  those  un- 
explored regions  where  the  sensation  is  metamor- 
phosed into  a  voluntary  act.  We  are  entirely  ignorant 
of  how  it  will  choose  amidst  the  infinite  tangle  of 
possible  ways;  but  the  organism,  which  at  each 
moment  concentrates  within  itself  the  sum  of  the 
reactions  of  all  the  constituent  molecules,  also  expe- 
riences no  hesitation,  for  it  makes  the  choice  which 
it  is  compelled  to  make.  We  are  bound  to  recognise 
that  this  choice  is  fore-determined,  meaning  thereby 
that  it  would  be  identically  reproduced  in  any  other 
case  in  which  the  elements  concerned  were  all  present 
without  any  modifications. 

The  reaction  therefore  takes  place  just  as  inevi- 
tably as  when  an  instinctive  act  is  in  question,  the 


262  FUTURE  LIFE 

only  difference  being  that  an  outside  observer  cannot 
foresee  it;  but  this  difference  is  purely  external  and 
does  not  in  any  way  alter  the  essential  nature  of  the 
phenomenon. 

Consciousness  tells  us  that  we  are  possessed  of 
liberty  of  choice;  but  this  is  a  mere  illusion,  due  to 
the  fact  that  these  phenomena  of  consciousness  are 
aroused  in  us  by  the  very  acts  which  manifest  the  life 
of  the  organism.  They  are  developed  side  by  side 
with  those  acts  which  they  verify  and  record,  but 
it  is  an  error  to  set  up  between  this  accompany- 
ing verification  and  the  act  itself  a  relation  of  cause 
and  effect.  Consciousness  is  only  and  can  only  be  an 
inactive  and  impotent  witness  of  the  act,  for  all  the 
observations  we  can  make  of  organised  beings  teach 
us  that  the  chain  of  facts  always  operates  just  as 
though  consciousness  had  no  existence,  and  the  prin- 
ciple of  continuity,  from  which  there  is  no  escaping, 
will  not  permit  us  to  attribute  to  consciousness  in 
man  an  activity  which  it  cannot  possess  in  other 
animals. 


CHAPTER   VII 

THE  VITAL   VORTEX 

All  Organic  Forces  subject  to  Determinism  and  to  the  Law  o£  Inde- 
structibility.—  Determinism  not  inconsistent  with  Intervention  of 
a  Purely  Directive  Force.  —  Recognition  of  this  Principle  by  Claude 
Bernard  and  Edmond  Perrier.  —  The  Difference  between  Elemen- 
tary Cells  and  Mere  Protoplasm.  —  Cuvier's  Comparison  of  the 
Movement  of  Molecules  in  the  Body  to  that  of  those  in  a  Whirlpool. 

—  Action  and  Reaction  between  the  Body  Molecules  and  the  Ether. 

—  The  Function  of  Microbes  in  Vegetation.  —  What  it  is  that  de- 
termines the  Kind  of  Animal  that  will  spring  from  a  Life-germ.  — 
The  Theory  of  Heredity.  —  The  Part  it  plays  in  preserving  the 
Lives  and  Instincts  of  Animals.  —  Immutability  of  Species  not 
Absolute.  —  Evolution  of  Human  Faculties.  —  Ether  as  an  Aid  to 
Evolution.  —  The  Action  of  the  Moral  upon  the  Physical.  —  Views 
held  on  this  Point  by  Quatrefages,  Milne-Edwards,  and  Perrier. — 
Replies  to  the  Materialistic  Theories  of  Le  Dantec  and  Others. — 
The  Mind  creates  the  Brain,  not  the  Brain  the  Mind.  —  The  Grad- 
ual Consumption  of  Vital  Energy  in  the  Production  of  Heat. — 
Man's  Hope  for  the  Time  when  this  Consumption  will  be  Complete. 

FROM  the  foregoing  exposition  it  may  be  seen 
how  the  result  of  the  theory  of  determinism 
is  to  reduce  to  mechanical  forces  all  the  mani- 
festations of  organic  life  together  with  the  various 
faculties  of  the  human  soul,  including  volition  itself, 
which  loses  all  independent  existence.  Hence,  from 
the  point  of  view  of  survival,  these  faculties,  being 
nothing  more  than  mere  ephemeral  movements  set 
up  by  physical  forces,  can  hope  for  no  survival  other 
than  that  of  the  physical  forces. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  thought  that,  even  when 
reduced  to  these  restricted  conditions,  this  survival 


264  FUTURE  LIFE 

would  be  of  no  account;  for  we  have  seen  in  the 
preceding  chapter  how  the  universal  law  of  inde- 
structibility preserves  all  manifestations  of  energy 
while  transforming  one  into  another,  and  also  that 
it  records  all  facts  without  destroying  them. 

It  is  at  the  same  time  evident  that  this  merely  im- 
personal immortality,  in  which  the  once  living  organ- 
ism would  be  represented  only  by  a  few  nameless 
vibrations  always  subject  to  varying  transformations, 
would  lose  much  of  its  value;  and  it  is  our  business 
to  inquire  whether  the  bold  negations  of  the  fore- 
going theory  are  really  based  quite  legitimately  upon 
scientific  observations  and  the  laws  at  present  deduc- 
ible  therefrom. 

We  shall  remark,  first,  that  the  determinism  of 
vital  phenomena  does  not  necessarily  exclude  the  pos- 
sibility of  intervention  in  the  development  of  the 
organism  by  a  purely  directive  force,  which,  although 
it  doubtless  in  no  way  alters  the  necessary  reactions 
between  various  physical  agents  present,  nevertheless 
watches  over  their  due  sequence  in  order  to  assure 
the  production  of  an  organism  conforming  with  some 
preconceived  plan,  and  according  to  an  admirable  sub- 
ordination which  the  physical  forces  could  not  pos- 
sibly realise. 

This  was,  indeed,  the  explicit  opinion  of  Claude 
Bernard,  the  great  physiologist : 

"  There  is,"  he  says,  "  in  the  animate  body  a  sort  of  orderly 
arrangement  which  cannot  be  overlooked,  because  it  is  in  reality 
the  most  salient  characteristic  of  living  organisms.  Thus,  when 
considered  singly,  each  phenomenon  of  the  economy  is  tributary 
to  the  general  forces  of  nature,  but,  when  taken  in  conjunction 
with  the  others,  it  reveals   a   special  bond,   and  seems  to  be 


THE   VITAL   VORTEX  265 

directed  in  the  course  which  it  follows  and  to  be  brought  to  the 
place  which  it  fills,  by  some  invisible  guide.  The  morphology 
of  the  organs  is  completely  distinct  from  their  physiological 
activity.  Life  directs  phenomena  which  it  does  not  produce, 
while  the  physical  agents  produce  phenomena  which  they  do 
not  direct." 

This  is  likewise  the  opinion  of  Edmond  Perrier,  the 
great  naturalist,  in  his  magnificent  treatise  upon  "  The 
Formation  of  Animal  Colonies."  He  brings  out  with 
great  skill  the  special  characters  distinguishing  the 
organised  being,  which  are  to  be  found  in  living 
matter  however  elementary  its  form,  even  in  that 
primitive  unindividualised  Oken's  jelly,  which  appears 
to  be  yet  devoid  of  all  vital  influence  of  any  particular 
form. 

The  living  matter  which  goes  to  make  up  ele- 
mentary cells,  the  plastids  and  merides  whose  com- 
bination constitutes  living  beings,  already  assumes, 
in  nucleated  cells,  a  peculiar  form  giving  it  distinct 
specific  characteristics,  whereas  protoplasm,  as  ob- 
served by  Dujardin  in  certain  microscopic  organisms 
termed  sarcodes,  appears  still  to  consist  of  homo- 
geneous matter  devoid  of  all  organisation;  it  would 
thus  form,  as  it  were,  a  substratum  of  life.  It 
approaches  inert  matter  as  closely  as  may  be,  and 
permits  us,  so  to  speak,  to  catch  the  first  crude  begin- 
nings of  the  manifestations  of  the  mysterious  force 
of  organism.  This  study  doubtless  proves  to  us  that 
protoplasm  is  nothing  but  an  albuminoid  substance,  a 
compound  of  oxygen,  carbon,  hydrogen,  and  nitro- 
gen, with  a  slight  admixture  of  mineral  bodies.  It 
certainly  belongs  to  a  group  of  particularly  complex 
substances,  which  chemistry  has  not  yet  succeeded  in 


W6  FUTURE  LIFE 

obtaining ;  yet  its  artificial  preparation  does  not  appear 
to  present  any  essential  difficulty,  and  it  is  perhaps 
not  overbold  to  suppose  that  the  day  when  we  shall 
succeed  in  preparing  it  by  synthesis  is  not  very  far 
off. 

It  must,  however,  be  admitted  that  even  then  the 
fundamental  difficulty  of  the  reproduction  of  proto- 
plasm will  still  remain.  For  living  matter  has  no 
determinate  chemical  composition ;  it  can,  so  to  speak, 
be  modified  in  all  its  proportions  without  being  de- 
stroyed; it  is  always  in  process  of  change,  whereas 
the  chemical  compound  ceases  to  be  itself  so  soon  as 
it  undergoes  the  slightest  modification. 

Hence,  it  must  be  allowed,  as  is  so  forcibly  re- 
marked by  M.  Perrier,  that  life  is  not  specially 
attached  to  the  molecules  which  sweep  along  in  a 
never-ending  cycle. 

It  takes  them  to  itself  for  an  instant  and  associates 
them  temporarily  in  the  continuous  vibratory  move- 
ment which  characterises  it ;  then  it  turns  them  away 
and  replaces  them  with  others. 

In  an  earlier  chapter  we  have  already  endeavoured 
to  demonstrate,  with  respect  to  the  human  body,  the 
eternal  movement  of  constituent  molecules  which  takes 
place  in  us,  and  we  have  shown  that  in  reality  those 
molecules  in  no  wise  belong  to  our  physical  body. 
Nature  lends  them  to  us  solely  for  our  precarious 
enjoyment,  and  never  gives  us  permission  to  keep 
them.  The  continuous  exchange,  which  takes  place 
with  relative  slowness  in  the  human  body,  goes  for- 
ward with  far  more  rapidity  in  the  life  of  proto- 
plasm and  primary  organisms.  We  may  say  that 
in  their  case  the  constituent  elements  are  renewed 


THE   VITAL   VORTEX  267 

in  their  entirety  every  few  moments.  We  must 
therefore  look  beyond  them  for  the  permanent  force 
characterising  the  organised  being,  the  hidden  spring 
which  keeps  this  incessant  movement  going. 

Without  doubt,  external  and  apparent  agents  exert 
an  influence  upon  the  movements  of  protoplasm  which 
it  is  impossible  to  deny;  but  they  are  neither  the  ex- 
clusive nor  the  predominant  cause ;  for  the  movement 
retains  its  activity  apart  from  all  intervention  of  the 
surrounding  medium. 

Life,  says  the  great  naturalist  Cuvier,  seems  to  us 
like  a  whirlpool,  the  liquid  vortices  and  gaseous  cy- 
clones whereof  furnish  us  with  an  image  that  has  its 
near  counterpart  in  the  domain  of  matter.  The  whirl- 
ing eddy  which  we  watch  at  some  particular  point  in 
the  river  carries  along  with  it  successively  all  the 
molecules  of  water  brought  to  it  by  the  stream. 
These  molecules  may  be  said  to  constitute  the  vortex 
at  any  given  moment,  in  that  it  cannot  manifest  itself 
without  them;  but  in  reality  it  is  the  resultant  of 
purely  external  causes,  such  as  the  conformation  of 
the  river-bed  at  that  particular  point,  the  obstacles 
which  it  may  present  to  the  free  down-flow  of  the 
current,  the  resulting  variations  of  speed,  etc.,  and  the 
molecules  of  water  successively  constituting  it  exer- 
cise in  themselves  only  the  most  restricted  influence; 
a  cork,  or  foreign  bodies  and  liquids  which  they  may 
carry  along  with  them  are  swept  round,  like  them, 
in  the  same  vortex,  without  modifying  it  more  than 
they. 

In  the  eyes  of  Cuvier  this  river  whirlpool  was  an 
exact  reproduction  of  the  phenomena  of  life;  for,  in 
his  view,  the  same  material  molecules  never  abide 


268  FUTURE  LIFE 

permanently  in  the  protoplasm,  but  are  carried  round 
in  the  incessant  whirl  which  alternately  attracts  and 
discards  them.  Cuvier  hence  concluded,  as  have  the 
most  authoritative  physiologists  after  him,  that  these 
continuous  phenomena  of  assimilation  and  disorgani- 
sation are  the  outward  sign,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
river  whirlpool,  of  the  action  of  exterior  forces  for 
the  most  part  independent  of  the  material  molecules 
which  they  precariously  animate.  The  present  physio- 
logical school  shows  a  tendency,  however,  to  abandon 
partly  the  simplicity  of  this  fundamental  conception. 
Two  essential  elements  are  now  distinguished  in 
protoplasm,  namely,  a  living  substance  and  independ- 
ent reserves.  It  is  asserted  that  the  life-whirl  acts 
almost  exclusively  upon  the  latter,  sparing  on  the 
contrary  the  primordial  substance  which  presides  over 
the  life  of  the  cell,  and  inflicting  only  limited  destruc- 
tion upon  it. 

Whatever  may  be  the  case,  this  slight  restriction 
does  not  appear  to  be  of  such  a  nature  as  to  modify 
the  •  conclusion  which  we  previously  drew  from  the 
conception  of  a  life-whirl.  Even  should  the  cell  con- 
tain certain  permanent  elements,  they  are  insufficient 
alone  to  explain  its  growth,  the  attraction  which  it 
exerts  upon  foreign  elements,  and  the  voluntary  sub- 
ordination in  which  it  remains  with  respect  to  the 
animate  grouping  of  which  it  forms  part. 

In  order  to  discover  this  governing  force,  which 
perpetually  eludes  us,  we  must  again  look  to  an  in- 
visible grouping  of  the  molecules  of  that  imponder- 
able element  to  which  we  have  already  so  frequently 
been  compelled  to  have  recourse  in  order  to  explain 
the  movements  even  of  inert  matter. 


THE   VITAL   VORTEX  269 

We  have  previously  seen  that  physics  cannot 
explain  the  phenomena  of  light  or  electricity  without 
the  intervention  of  ether.  This  mysterious  fluid  is 
supposed  to  play  its  part,  as  we  have  said,  in  the  con- 
stitution of  the  material  atom,  the  properties  of  which 
it  characterises  by  its  peculiar  mode  of  arrangement. 
We  are  therefore  only  legitimately  extending  this 
reasoning  when  we  recur  to  the  same  explanation  in 
the  case  of  vital  phenomena,  and  admit  that  they,  too, 
are  determined  by  the  constant  action  of  a  special 
force,  also  the  result  of  an  appropriate  arrangement 
of  ether  corpuscles. 

The  only  point  of  difference  from  inert  matter  is 
that,  whereas  the  molecules  whose  grouping  consti- 
tutes the  material  atom  can  be  detached  only  with 
exceeding  difficulty,  we  are  here  in  presence  of  an 
ether  group  almost  independent  of  the  matter  which 
it  involves. 

It  must,  however,  be  remarked  that  this  independ- 
ence is  not  absolute;  for  the  very  movement  of  the 
material  molecules  determines  a  continuous  reaction 
upon  the  directing  ether;  and  though  this  reaction 
is  almost  imperceptible  from  moment  to  moment,  its 
cumulative  force  can  in  the  long  run  profoundly  trans- 
form, if  not  entirely  destroy,  the  organism. 

Even  thus  is  it  with  the  river  whirlpool  of  which 
we  spoke  a  short  time  back.  It  is  the  outcome  of  an 
arrangement  of  the  river-bed  determining  the  nature 
of  the  current  at  this  particular  point.  But  the  cur- 
rent none  the  less  reacts  upon  the  obstacle,  which  it 
modifies  little  by  little.  The  imperceptible  transfor- 
mation which  has  been  going  forward  is  seen  only 
after  a  long  lapse  of  time.    In  the  same  way  we  may 


270  FUTURE  LIFE 

suppose  the  transformation  of  living  species  to  take 
place  under  analogous  conditions;  the  matter  involved 
and  the  ambient  medium  reacting  upon  the  etheric 
force. 

We  can  at  the  same  time  conceive  how  it  is  pos- 
sible without  any  break  of  continuity  to  pass  along 
the  whole  scale  of  living  organisms,  if  we  accept  the 
fact  that  this  force  is  doubtless  not  constituted  by  a 
single  indivisible  element  upon  which  life  is  neces- 
sarily dependent,  but  by  a  permanent  complex  etheric 
grouping  more  or  less  fully  individualised. 

This  grouping  governs  matter  according  to  invari- 
able laws,  having  in  them  nothing  that  is  arbitrary, 
and  necessarily  reproducing  the  phenomenon  under 
identical  conditions.  If,  however,  it  can  manifest  it- 
self only  through  the  exclusive  intermediary  of  the 
affinities  of  the  matter  which  it  brings  into  action, 
and  if  we  are  entitled  to  say  that  all  the  chemical 
compounds  which  it  produces  might  be  obtained 
equally  well  by  other  means  apart  from  it,  neverthe- 
less is  it  true  that  it  impresses  upon  the  elementary 
reactions  which  it  sets  up  a  character  entirely  distinct 
from  that  which  they  would  otherwise  have. 

The  micro-organisms  presiding  over  the  formation 
of  the  humus  of  the  vegetable  soil,  those  which  are 
able  to  fasten  the  atmospheric  nitrogen  in  the  roots 
of  plants,  or  extract  oxygen  from  the  decomposition 
of  inorganic  carbonates,  those  which  take  part  in  fer- 
mentations of  all  kinds,  in  the  phenomena  of  nutri- 
tion, in  birth,  in  the  growth  and  in  the  decomposition 
of  all  that  is  living,  —  all  these  necessary  workmen  in 
the  great  laboratory  of  life  exercise  a  peculiar  chem- 
istry of  their  own,  the  particular  laws  of  which  are 


THE    VITAL    VORTEX  271 

far  from  being  identical  with  those  which  govern  the 
inorganic  world. 

If  in  elementary  reactions  these  living  atoms  inter- 
vene to  direct  the  affinities  of  the  inert  atoms  upon 
which  their  action  is  exerted,  they  themselves  are 
governed  in  their  turn,  in  the  manifestations  of  higher 
life,  by  a  new  force  even  more  inaccessible,  which 
manifests  itself  by  obliging  them  to  collaborate  in 
the  carrying  out  of  the  general  plan  which  it  is  pur- 
suing; so  much  so,  indeed,  that  when  that  force  dis- 
appears the  phenomena  will  take  an  entirely  new  turn. 

In  the  case  of  sudden  death,  brought  about  for 
instance  by  excessive  moral  shock,  the  body  is  affected 
by  no  perceptible  lesion,  and  yet  the  activity  of  the 
micro-organisms  will  undergo  complete  and  instan- 
taneous transformation;  henceforth  they  will  insure 
the  decomposition  of  the  corpse  with  the  same  solici- 
tude that  a  moment  before  they  displayed  in  sustain- 
ing its  life. 

We  thus  conceive  the  vital  force  among  the  higher 
animals  as  associated  with  a  grouping  of  infinitely 
attenuated  corpuscles,  even  more  subtile  than  those  of 
the  ether,  and  directing  the  ether ic  vortices  just  as 
the  latter  direct  the  material  atoms  which  they  attract. 

These  new  groupings  constitute  as  many  definite 
types  as  there  are  species  of  animals,  and  each  of 
them  is  transmitted  together  with  the  germ  which  is 
destined  to  become  a  new  being  conforming  with  the 
specific  type.  It  is  this  grouping,  in  fact,  which  gives 
to  the  germ  its  whole  value  and  determines  its  life 
history;  for  the  germ  itself,  taken  at  the  moment 
of  birth  and  viewed  with  regard  to  its  chemical 
composition,  contains  nothing  which  will  allow  us 


272  FUTURE  LIFE 

to  predict  its  development.  We  cannot  even  say 
whether  the  animal  which  is  to  spring  from  it  will 
be  the  highest  or  lowest  in  the  organic  scale,  a 
reasoning  man  or  a  simple  protozoan. 

M.  F.  Le  Dantec,  whose  admirable  works  draw 
their  inspiration  from  a  point  of  view  absolutely  an- 
tagonistic to  that  here  adopted,  asserts  that  every 
living  organism,  so  soon  as  individualised,  is  charac- 
terised by  the  special  constitution  of  its  protoplasm, 
which  remains  uniform  throughout  its  course  of  ex- 
istence and  in  some  way  determines  its  physiological 
and  moral  history. 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  remark  that  at  bottom, 
and  despite  the  divergence  of  principles  which  sun- 
ders them,  this  ingenious  theory  blends  with  that 
here  expounded,  for  both  endeavour  to  explain  the 
facts  of  individual  life  by  consideration  of  a  directive 
grouping  special  to  it. 

We  look  for  this  grouping  in  the  etheric  plane 
simply  because  we  see  no  possibility  of  associating  its 
properties  with  visible  matter,  as  does  M.  Le  Dantec. 
Our  opinion  is  shared  by  the  majority  of  physiolo- 
gists, who  remark,  as  M.  Dastre  so  well  shows,  that 
it  is  difficult  to  speak  of  a  special  and  uniform  com- 
position with  reference  to  so  essentially  variable  a 
liquid  as  protoplasm.  We  are  hence  compelled  to 
look  to  the  etheric  plane  for  the  unknown  cause  of 
the  continuous  activity  for  which  matter  furnishes  no 
justification. 

We  have  seen  that  specific  heredity  cannot  be  ex- 
plained by  any  theory  in  which  only  the  properties  of 
tangible  matter  are  taken  into  account.  It  has  not 
been  possible  to  prove,  as  Darwin  supposed,  that  the 


THE   VITAL   VORTEX  273 

germ  receives  plastidules  derived  from  all  the  cells  of 
the  bodies  of  the  parents,  and  we  are  therefore  in- 
evitably reduced  to  considering  invisible  and  infinitely 
subtile  corpuscles  as  transmitting  and  maintaining  life. 

The  etheric  vortex  thus  engendered  concentrates 
within  it,  besides  the  specific  form,  the  tradition  of 
acquired  habits.  It  is  by  its  aid  that  the  new-born 
animal,  upon  entering  into  life  under  conditions  often 
precarious,  performs  instinctively  certain  movements 
peculiar  to  its  species  and  requisite  for  the  develop- 
ment, maintenance,  and  preservation  of  its  existence. 

It  is  under  these  conditions  alone  that  it  can  do 
without  the  support  and  instruction  of  its  parent, 
which  it  often  does  not  even  see,  as  is  the  case  with 
most  insects,  which  die  immediately  after  laying  the 
eggs  from  which  their  progeny  will  later  emerge, 
possessed  of  the  instinct  of  their  race  and  endowed, 
as  has  been  shown  by  experiment,  with  the  new  habits 
acquired  by  their  parents  during  life,  if  by  any  chance 
they  were  placed  in  abnormal  conditions  or  confronted 
with  peculiar  difficulties  compelling  them  to  add  some- 
thing to  their  hereditary  instinct. 

Here  we  have  an  example  of  the  need  of  this  invis- 
ible intermediary  whereby  are  assured  the  perma- 
nence of  racial  forms  and  the  continuity  of  racial 
instincts,  and  we  comprehend,  too,  how  it  becomes 
possible  to  conceive  the  immutability  of  species.  We 
recognise  that  this  immutability  is  the  result  of  an 
etheric  grouping  more  subtile  than  that  of  the  material 
atom.  It  is  immutable  in  the  same  sense;  but  this 
immutability  is  merely  relative,  for  the  grouping 
undergoes  a  constant  reaction  under  the  influence  of 
the  vital  vortex  which  it  provokes,  just  as  the  eddy  of 

18 


274  FUTURE  LIFE 

a  river  is  always  changing  under  the  continuous 
reaction  caused  by  the  modifications  which  it  pro- 
duces in  the  material  obstacles  presented  by  the  river 
bed.  The  reaction  thus  exercised  at  each  instant  on 
the  vital  vortex  is  no  doubt  so  trifling  that  it  may 
be  regarded  as  non-existent,  but  in  course  of  time 
it  accumulates  and  acquires  an  appreciable  impor- 
tance, and  so  may  insensibly  result  at  last  in  a  trans- 
formation of  the  species. 

The  higher  the  forms  of  life,  the  more  pronounced 
are  these  modifications;  in  the  lower  forms,  on  the 
contrary,  they  are  much  diminished.  It  would  seem, 
indeed,  that  the  corresponding  etheric  groupings  offer 
better  resistance  to  perturbing  influences  when  their 
action  upon  matter  becomes  more  immediate;  and 
thus  it  is  that  the  chemical  atoms  which  constitute, 
so  to  speak,  the  species  of  the  inorganic  world,  have 
so  far  defied  all  attempts  at  decomposition. 

As  we  proceed  upward  in  the  scale  of  organism, 
the  vital  force  takes  new  characteristics  in  addition  to 
those  which  it  had  at  first,  and  which  give  it  a  distinct 
physiognomy.  It  is  always  the  same  incessant  vortex 
characteristic  of  protoplasm ;  but  little  by  little  appear 
sensitivity,  intelligence,  volition,  in  fine  all  the  facul- 
ties of  the  human  soul,  which  we  already  find  more  or 
less  latent  or  apparent  in  the  higher  animals. 

These  faculties  are  expressed  by  more  or  less  sub- 
tile etheric  groupings,  which  must  preserve  their  own 
particular  character  upon  the  corresponding  plane  in 
conformity  with  the  law  of  indestructibility,  which 
we  find  to  be  constantly  in  force  in  the  material  world. 

The  chemical  atom  passes  through  the  most 
varied  combinations   without  being  either  modified 


THE   VITAL   VORTEX  275 

or  destroyed;  physical  energy  is  preserved  integrally 
through  all  its  manifold  manifestations,  and  organic 
life  appears  to  us  to  be  always  self-identical  in  each 
of  the  species  which  it  animates.  We  have,  therefore, 
reason  for  supposing  that  the  mysterious  movements 
of  subtile  atoms  of  which  organic  life  is  the  result  also 
conform  to  the  law  of  indestructibility  governing  all 
the  planes  of  the  universe. 

And  if,  in  thus  representing  them  by  permanent 
ether ic  groupings,  we  bestow  an  objective  existence 
upon  the  forms  of  organic  life,  because  we  see  no 
possibility  of  endowing  the  material  atom  with  a 
directive  power  of  which  it  is  devoid  in  all  other 
cases,  are  we  not  also  entitled  to  apply  the  same  pro- 
cess of  reasoning  in  the  case  of  the  higher  animals, 
in  order  to  explain  the  existence  of  their  souls,  by 
showing  how,  one  after  another,  there  appear  in  them 
the  qualities  of  sensitivity  and  later  of  intelligence 
and  volition,  qualities  unknown  to  the  elementary 
protoplasm  and  lower  organisms,  and  which  give 
to  their  possessors  a  very  definite  individual  character  ? 

At  the  summit  of  the  scale  we  find  man  possessed 
of  faculties  of  abstract  thought,  charity,  and  self- 
sacrifice,  which  are  unknown  to  the  higher  animals, 
and  we  are  again  led  to  consider  this  as  a  manifesta- 
tion of  a  more  subtile  ether-grouping,  likewise  en- 
dowed with  a  certain  indestructibility. 

Experience  proves  to  us  that  this  etheric  grouping, 
albeit  it  operates  upon  a  plane  other  than  that  of 
matter,  is  none  the  less  capable  of  interfering  with 
organic  life,  and  in  some  cases  of  modifying  the  regu- 
lar course  of  development  which  it  would  otherwise 
pursue.     The  action  of  the  moral  upon  the  physical 


276  FUTURE  LIFE 

is  a  phenomenon  constantly  to  be  observed.  Joy  and 
grief  can  cause  death;  terror  can  induce  sudden 
paralysis,  whiten  the  hair,  or  suspend  the  function 
of  some  particular  organ,  such  as  sight  or  hearing. 
But  even  more  than  this:  when  this  etheric  force 
acts  upon  living  matter  taken,  as  it  were,  in  its  nascent 
state,  it  can  give  rise  to  new  forms  which  are  not  those 
of  the  normal  organism,  and  which  consequently  indi- 
cate the  interference  of  some  disturbing  element. 

Take  for  instance  birth-marks,  the  ncevi  which 
appear  upon  the  body  of  the  uterine  foetus  and  occa- 
sionally reproduce,  even  to  the  minutest  detail,  the 
appearance  of  some  external  object  which  may  have 
caused  an  excessive  impression  upon  the  mother.  It 
must  be  acknowledged  that  the  psychical  reaction 
thus  provoked  possessed  sufficient  active  material 
power  to  overcome,  in  a  certain  degree,  the  aggre- 
gative forces  governing  the  growth  of  the  living 
organism,  and  to  modify  the  arrangement  toward 
which  they  tend.  Here  again  we  have  to  deal  with 
a  clear  instance  of  the  interference  of  some  special 
force  quite  independent  of  those  which  we  remark 
in  the  study  of  inert  matter ;  and  here  we  are  revert- 
ing to  the  old  theory  which  we  have  already  en- 
countered in  a  different  garb  when  investigating 
ancient  beliefs;  it  is  a  theory,  however,  which  is 
insisted  upon  by  many  of  the  most  authoritative 
among  naturalists. 

M.  de  Quatrefages  believed  that  side  by  side  with 
the  material  forces  there  exists  a  distinct  animic  ele- 
ment, in  which  he  recognised  the  unknown  but  single 
cause  of  the  phenomena  of  animality. 

Milne-Edwards  supposed  it  to  be  a  subtile  matter 


THE   VITAL   VORTEX  277 

diffused  in  the  mysterious  ether,  while  M.  Perrier  tells 
us  that  the  conception  of  an  ether ic  grouping  attached 
to  the  protoplasm  of  a  determinate  germ,  to  which  it 
transmits  the  hereditary  faculties,  is  by  far  the  most 
simple  and  most  comprehensive  hypothesis;  and,  in 
so  far  as  the  human  soul  is  concerned,  that  eminent 
naturalist  explicitly  declares  that  nothing  entitles  us 
to  deny  it  an  objective  existence  or  to  consider 
it  a  merely  transitory  and  eminently  destructible 
combination. 

In  the  view  of  the  doctrine  of  evolution  it  is,  he 
says,  the  final  outcome  up  to  now  of  a  long  process 
which  has  been  going  forward  through  the  ages, 
parallel  with  that  evolutionary  process  which  has 
brought  the  human  body  to  its  actual  state,  and  con- 
sequently it  must  subsist  likewise  with  its  own  pecu- 
liar characters  in  virtue  of  the  law  of  indestructibility, 
which  is  never  disobeyed. 

We  are  not  unaware  that  this  conception,  which 
affirms  the  existence  of  vital  forces  and  locates  them 
in  the  vibratory  movements  of  an  invisible  element, 
is  still  far  from  being  universally  accepted.  We  have 
even  given  a  summary  of  the  theory  put  forward  by 
M.  Le  Dantec  which  recognises  in  the  individual  con- 
sciousness nothing  but  the  simple  sum  of  the  con- 
sciousness of  the  elementary  plastids,  whose  union 
forms  the  physical  body.  We  have  also  shown  that 
such  a  hypothesis  appears  to  be  neither  sufficient  nor 
exact,  for  it  attributes  to  material  molecules  proper- 
ties unknown  to  inorganic  chemistry,  and  of  which  an 
explanation  must  be  sought  in  an  additional  invisible 
element,  just  as  we  are  bound  to  do  in  the  case  of 


278  FUTURE  LIFE 

physical  forces.  It  is,  however,  expedient  to  examine, 
in  greater  detail,  certain  among  the  objections  ad- 
vanced by  materialistic  theories,  and  so  bring  out  the 
replies  applicable  to  them. 

»  As  regards  the  formation  of  the  individual  con- 
sciousness, it  may  be  advanced,  in  the  first  place, 
against  M.  Le  Dantec,  that  it  remains  in  complete 
ignorance  of  the  elementary  reactions  maintaining 
the  body  which  it  animates ;  the  consciousness  indeed 
becomes  more  and  more  prominently  accentuated  in 
proportion  as  those  reactions  become  less  so,  and  as 
the  physiological  life  becomes  less  absorbed  by  the 
work  of  assimilation  impeding  the  manifestation  of 
the  moral  life.  We  may  also  adduce  what  has  been 
remarked  in  the  case  of  certain  functional  diseases, 
locomotor  ataxy  for  instance,  that  though  the  power 
of  coordinate  movement  vanishes,  the  moral  con- 
sciousness is  not  impaired.  It  is,  again,  constantly 
observed  that  children  display  natural  qualities  and 
inclinations  which  it  is  impossible  to  discover  in  their 
parents ;  twins,  for  instance,  who  have  been  brought 
up  under  absolutely  identical  conditions,  nevertheless 
present  entirely  dissimilar  aptitudes;  and  this  can- 
not be  explained  by  the  influence  of  their  external 
surroundings. 

It  has  been  advanced  as  another  objection  that  we 
do  not  know  of  the  existence  of  thought  apart  from 
the  brain,  and  that  we  must  consequently  regard 
thought  as  a  mere  function  of  that  organ.  Against 
this  it  must  be  remarked  that  the  working  of  thought 
in  the  brain  is  completely  distinct  from  that  of  the 
vital  and  organic  forces,  for  it  involves  no  concomi- 
tant chemical  reactions,  as  they  do,  and  consequently 


/( 


/        /        THE^VITAL   VORTEX  279 

has  no  real  equivalent  in  the  material  world.  We 
should  also  recall  a  fact  which  is  exceedingly  strange 
although  so  commonly  remarked,  namely,  that  sleep, 
which  in  certain  fashion  interrupts  physical  existence, 
does  not  always  suspend  the  action  of  thought.  Fre- 
quently, indeed,  the  idea  or  answer  to  a  problem  which 
we  had  vainly  sought  the  day  before  dawns  upon  us 
when  we  wake,  as  if  the  soul  had  succeeded  in  work- 
ing it  out  during  sleep  by  a  sort  of  inward  uncon- 
scious process,  which  none  the  less  reveals  to  us  the 
independent  activity  with  which  it  is  endowed. 

Moreover,  the  very  tenets  of  evolution  tell  us  that 
it  is  the  tendency  of  the  function  to  create  the  organ ; 
but  this  law  would  be  completely  violated  if  thought 
were  the  simple  outcome  of  the  brain's  action,  for  it 
would  then  be  the  organ  which  had  created  the 
function. 

We  should  rather  view  the  brain  as  the  organ 
which  materialises  consciousness  and  ideas  in  the 
physical  world.  Otherwise  they  would  exist  only  in 
the  etheric  plane.  If  in  the  evening  of  life  thought 
loses  somewhat  of  its  vigour  and  clarity,  it  is  because 
the  instrument  which  it  possesses  in  order  to  manifest 
itself  no  longer  enjoys  its  pristine  acuteness,  but  has 
become  worn  out  together  with  the  physical  body. 
We  know,  moreover,  that  both  thought  and  person- 
ality are  in  a  certain  measure  independent  of  the 
brain,  seeing  that  in  cases  of  somnambulism  and 
mediumship  we  may  observe  the  unconscious  being,  or 
even  different  personalities,  for  the  most  part  purely 
fictitious,  temporarily  express  themselves  by  means 
of  the  organ  of  the  somnambulist  or  medium,  who 
nevertheless  afterwards  returns  to  his  normal  state, 


280  FUTURE  LIFE 

thus  proving  that  the  brain  can  undergo  temporary 
transposition  without  being  affected  thereby. 
•"'  A  third  objection  may  be  advanced,  namely,  that 
all  the  arguments  which  have  been  put  forward  in 
support  of  the  independent  existence  of  the  soul  apply 
to  all  the  animals  as  well.  In  principle  this  remark 
is  quite  correct.  Apart  from  specific  survival  we  are 
obliged  to  concede  a  certain  independence  to  the  con- 
sciousness of  the  higher  animals,  but  only  in  so  far 
as  that  consciousness  is  individualised  and  can  per- 
form acts  not  dependent  on  pure  instinct,  which  latter 
can  be  explained  by  the  simple  consideration  of  the 
specific  soul. 

We  may  suppose  in  this  case  that  the  individual 
soul  is  represented  by  etheric  movements  of  a  more 
subtle  description,  whence  it  draws,  temporarily  at 
least,  an  independent  existence. 

In  each  of  these  planes  the  vortex  thus  constituted 
is  doubtless  not  indefinite  in  its  duration.  As  time 
goes  on,  it  becomes  modified  as  to  those  vortices  which 
visibly  act  upon  matter,  and  when  this  transformation 
takes  place  a  more  subtle  vortex  appears  correspond- 
ing to  a  higher  faculty,  and  in  this  the  individual 
consciousness  is  localised. 

This  is  clearly  no  more  than  a  theory;  but  it  may 
be  seen  how  grandly  it  would  generalise  the  doctrine 
of  evolution,  seeing  that  it  supposes  the  incessant 
transformations  which  that  doctrine  observes  in  liv- 
ing organisms  to  be  taking  place,  not  only  in  per- 
ceptible matter,  but  also  in  all  the  planes  of  an 
increasingly  subtile  fluidic  matter.  Such  a  supposi- 
tion carries  back  the  limits  of  the  infinitely  small  far 
beyond  the  boldest  flights  of  the  imagination,  and  we 


THE    VITAL    VORTEX  281 

thus  recognise  that  the  wonderful  ether  which  bathes 
all  worlds  is  really  the  necessary  agent  of  the  unity 
of  creation,  not  only  in  the  infinity  of  space,  but  in 
the  infinity  of  life. 

We  may  add  again,  —  once  more  recurring  to  the 
law  of  the  conservation  of  energy,  which  is  perhaps 
the  sole  conquest  of  science  now  uncontested,  —  that 
the  application  which  it  undergoes  in  vital  phenomena 
results  in  the  destruction  of  energy  in  its  highest 
modes  and  is  continually  reducing  it  to  its  least 
evolved  form,  namely,  heat.  We  know  indeed  that 
the  alimentation  of  animals  principally  consumes  the 
potential  energy  contained  in  food,  and  resolves  itself 
almost'  exclusively  in  the  production  of  heat,  and  this 
is  an  operation  which  cannot  be  reversed.  Animal 
life,  therefore,  plays  its  part  in  the  essential  phenome- 
non of  the  retrogression  of  energy,  which  epitomises 
for  us  the  history  of  the  universe,  and  it  thus  largely 
contributes  to  hasten  the  world's  end. 

We  thus  see  at  what  a  heavy  price  the  material 
universe  must  buy  its  organic  life,  which  is  its  beauty, 
seeing  that  it  pays  with  its  very  existence.     Is  it  not 
legitimate  to  think  that  this  is  no  useless  sacrifice,  but 
that  it  must  contribute  to  transfer  permanently  to  a 
newer  and  more  subtile  plane  that  ephemeral  life  which 
the  universe  has  purchased  with  its  own? 
'  We  know  that  the  most  insis^nificant  material  facts 
I  are  recorded  in  the  invisible  ether;    it  preserves  their 
I  image  in  its  unceasing  vibrations;   must  we  not  sup-j 
pose  that  life  itself  and,  above  all,  personality,  which 
,  are  the  most  dearly  purchased  manifestations  of  .the 
\  activity  of  the  universe,  likewise  persist  in  the  hidden 
I  vibrations  of  a  yet  more  subtile  ether? 


282  FUTURE  LIFE 

We  shall  not  harp  upon  this  theory,  which  we  put 
forward  chiefly  to  show  how  the  notion  of  the  objec- 
tive existence  of  vital  force  is  naturally  connected 
with  the  conception  now  held  by  science  of  the  pre- 
ponderating role  played  by  the  ether  in  the  universe. 
But  as  this  is,  from  our  point  of  view,  a  capital  ques- 
tion, which  so  far  as  possible  calls  for  verification  in 
fact,  apart  from  all  theoretical  considerations,  we 
shall  endeavour  in  the  next  chapters  to  discuss  the 
observations  which  go  to  indicate  the  presence  in 
man  of  an  immaterial,  or  rather  superphysical, 
element. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

THE   BORDER-LAND   OF   SCIENCE 

The  Higher  the  Organism,  the  more  Complex  is  the  Etheric  Grouping 
constituting  its  Life-force.  —  Revival  of  the  Ancient  Theory  that 
Various  Faculties  may  be  distinguished  in  Etheric  Bodies.  —  Equi- 
librium of  Material  Forces  undisturbed  by  the  Intervention  of  the 
Life  Principle.  —  Evidence  of  the  Independent  Existence  of  this 
Directive  Element  to  be  looked  for  among  Certain  Mysterious  Phe- 
nomena. —  The  Difficulty  of  Proof  lies  in  the  Fact  that  these  Phe- 
nomena cannot  be  reproduced  at  Will.  —  Inquiry  hindered  by  the 
Apathy  and  Hostility  of  Scientists.  —  Even  Physics  and  Chemistry 
not  free  from  an  Illusive  Irregularity  in  their  Phenomena.  —  Ex- 
amples mentioned  by  Camille  Flammarion.  —  Scientists  cannot  ex- 
plain Phenomena  producible  at  Will,  without  the  Agency  of  Certain 
Hypothetical  Elements.  —  Outline  of  the  Plan  to  be  followed  in 
Subsequent  Chapters. 

WE  have  shown  that  it  is  possible  to  con- 
sider life  in  the  infinite  manifestations 
which  it  assumes  as  always  being  directed 
by  a  force  independent  of  the  matter  which  it  em- 
ploys. This  force  itself  has  appeared  to  us  as  being 
constituted  by  an  etheric  grouping  of  more  or  less 
complexity,  peculiar  to  each  living  organism.  In  the 
lower  forms  of  life  this  grouping  differs  but  little 
from  the  first  crude  beginnings  discernible  in  inert 
bodies,  especially  in  crystals,  but  it  becomes  more 
and  more  refined  and  complicated  the  higher  we 
ascend  in  the  scale  of  organisms.  First  of  all,  it  is 
the  general  type  of  the  species  of  which  the  mem- 
bers have  as  yet  no  distinct  individuality,  but  higher, 
among  the  superior  animals,  it  assumes  a  personality 


284  FUTURE  LIFE 

which  becomes  increasingly  definite  in  character,  until 
finally  in  the  human  being  it  attains  the  most  exalted 
form  that  we  can  conceive. 

In  these  various  manifestations  the  etheric  group- 
ing appears  gradually  to  change  its  nature  as  it 
reaches  by  degrees  new  planes  which  are  increasingly 
subtile.  It  thus  reproduces  that  continuous  transition 
which  unites  all  the  organisms  of  creation  despite 
the  fundamental  differences  distinguishing  the  great 
classes  into  which  they  are  partitioned  out. 

In  its  crudest  form  this  grouping  simply  sustains 
physical  life  and  determines  the  morphology  of  the 
living  organism.  In  this  form  it  therefore  corre- 
sponds to  the  etheric  body  proper,  as  conceived  by 
theosophy,  of  which  we  here  borrow  the  terminology. 
There  next  arises  a  more  subtle  grouping  in  which 
sensitivity  is  manifested,  while  the  personality  of  the 
organism  begins  to  be  faintly  outlined;  the  astral 
body  is  becoming  more  and  more  pronounced  as  we 
rise  toward  the  higher  animals.  Thus  by  degrees 
the  plane  of  intelligence  is  reached  where  the  mental 
body  appears,  first  very  crude  in  certain  animal 
species,  but  attaining  its  plenitude  in  man,  in  w^hom 
it  is  the  organ  of  such  lofty  faculties  of  the  soul  as 
he  alone  possesses,  —  for  example,  the  idea  of  reason, 
the  notion  of  the  infinite,  and,  above  all,  of  duty  and 
love  of  self-sacrifice. 

This  distinction  of  various  faculties  resident  in 
immaterial  bodies,  united  by  the  action  of  the  soul 
properly  so  called,  of  which  they  are  the  organs  and 
whose  personality  they  characterise,  is  one  that  we 
have  already  met  with  under  various  names  when 
studying  ancient  beliefs;    it  is  a  distinction  revived 


THE  BORDER-LAND   OF  SCIENCE        285 

by  theosophy,  and  one  which  it  would  be  particularly 
interesting  here  to  discuss  in  the  name  of  science.  It 
is,  however,  evidently  impossible  to  do  this  under  com- 
pletely satisfactory  conditions;  for  the  data  afforded 
by  experiment  are  unhappily  not  forthcoming.  But, 
without  attempting  to  enter  into  the  distinction  of 
these  various  planes,  we  can  very  well  inquire  whether 
the  observation  of  facts  does  not  permit  us  to  con- 
clude, with  a  certain  probability,  the  existence  of  a 
subtle  grouping,  presiding  in  principle  over  physical 
life  and  exerting  thereupon  an  influence  unlike  that 
of  the  material  forces. 

Doubtless  we  are  aware  that  vital  phenomena  are 
governed  by  the  same  unvarying  laws  as  the  re- 
actions of  inert  matter;  we  observe  that  life  does 
not  reveal  itself  to  us  by  any  special  spontaneity, 
and  yet  are  we  not  right  in  affirming  that  it  be- 
longs of  necessity  to  a  plane  different  from  that  of 
the  physical  forces,  since  it  acts  exclusively  through 
their  medium,  while  its  intervention  never  disturbs 
their  equilibrium?  If  we,  therefore,  represent  it  by 
the  subtle  grouping  of  which  we  spoke  above,  we 
may  say  that  from  birth  until  death  this  grouping 
appears,  develops,  and  disappears  without  ever  leav- 
ing its  equivalent  in  the  transformations  of  energy; 
and  in  the  same  way  it  is  intervening  at  every 
moment  in  the  manifestations  of  sensitive  and  in- 
tellectual life  without  affecting  the  material  forces 
present,  as  it  should  did  it  share  their  nature. 

These  are  doubtless  arguments  the  value  of  which 
it  is  impossible  to  overlook,  but  they  must  fail  of 
their  full  cogency  unless  we  succeed  in  some  way 
in    isolating    this    hypothetical    grouping,    and    in 


286  FUTURE  LIFE 

showing  that  although  it  may  remain  inaccessible  to 
our  senses,  it  can,  in  certain  exceptional  cases  at 
least,  reveal  itself  by  some  spontaneous  action  quite 
different  from  that  of  the  physical  forces,  and 
apparently  free  from  the  laws  controlling  them. 

We  shall  in  so  doing  be  called  upon  to  discuss  a 
whole  series  of  mysterious  phenomena  which,  till 
within  a  short  time  ago,  remained  outside  the  sphere 
of  positive  science,  but  wherein  we  may  perhaps  find 
the  evidence  which  it  were  vain  to  seek  in  the  facts 
of  normal  life.  Finally,  we  shall  be  entitled  to  con- 
clude legitimately  that  if  this  directive  element  really 
belongs  to  a  plane  other  than  that  of  matter,  the 
death  of  the  physical  body  cannot  affect  it  in  its 
essence. 

The  scientific  recording  of  facts  of  this  kind  would 
therefore  be  of  inestimable  value,  but  unhappily  it  is 
a  task  involving  serious  difficulties ;  for  in  the  majority 
of  cases  there  is  no  possibility  of  arriving  at  the 
negative  criterion  which  positive  science  is  accus- 
tomed to  look  for  in  observing  material  facts. 

From  the  very  fact  that  the  phenomena  observed 
would  seem  to  attest  a  certain  spontaneity  of  the 
etheric  element,  it  becomes  impossible  to  reproduce 
them  at  will.  We  cannot,  therefore,  attribute  to  them 
rigorous  scientific  certainty ;  we  must  remain  satisfied 
with  what  one  may  call  historic  certainty,  based  upon 
the  evidence  of  witnesses  whose  competence  and  good 
faith  require  to  be  established. 

We  are,  in  brief,  advancing  into  the  border-land  of 
science,  into  those  mysterious  regions  not  yet  suflfi- 
ciently  explored,  where  the  observer  experiences  such 
difficulty  in  securing  exact  and  uncontested  facts.    In 


THE  BORDER-LAND   OF  SCIENCE         287 

the  face  of  these  accumulated  difficulties  it  is  not 
surprising  that,  till  within  the  last  few  years,  the 
majority  of  scientists  preferred  to  deny  these  strange 
phenomena  without  investigation,  rather  than  make 
any  endeavour  to  verify  their  genuineness  or  seek  an 
explanation  of  them.  This  is,  indeed,  an  attitude 
constantly  recurring  in  the  history  of  science.  New 
discoveries  which  have  been  so  inconsiderate  as  to 
disturb  already  accepted  theories  have,  as  a  general 
rule,  had  to  struggle  against  the  indifference,  and 
sometimes  the  hostility,  of  the  most  respected  scien- 
tific authorities.  It  is,  nevertheless,  the  duty  of  the 
true  scientist  to  welcome  with  gratitude  the  negative 
fact  which  shakes  his  hypothesis,  for  that  fact  may 
open  to  him  new  and  unsuspected  horizons  and  lead 
him  to  a  modified  theory  that  is  more  comprehensive 
and  more  exact. 

Should  the  phenomena  assume  a  marvellous  form, 
rendering  their  explanation  more  arduous,  the  inves- 
tigation of  them  becomes  proportionately  more  inter- 
esting and  susceptible  of  yielding  in  the  future  more 
convincing  results,  when  it  shall  have  proved  their 
reality.  This  is  evidently  what  the  scientist  should 
endeavour  to  do,  taking  care  at  the  same  time  to 
arm  himself  with  all  the  safeguards  of  exactitude 
and  with  all  the  means  of  observation  furnished  by 
science,  so  long  as  he  does  not  actually  frustrate  the 
production  of  the  phenomenon. 

Moreover,  it  is  hardly  doubtful  that  the  majority 
of  these  phenomena  are  of  a  purely  natural  order, 
akin  to  those  which  science  studies  elsewhere;  and 
if  they  at  present  wear  a  marvellous  character,  it  is 
because  we  are  as  yet  ignorant  of  the  conditions  under 


288  FUTURE  LIFE 

which  they  are  produced.  But  this  has  always  been 
the  case  with  all  scientific  discoveries.  To  have  seen 
a  mechanical  action  transmitted  over  long  distances 
by  the  agency  of  an  electric  wire,  or  by  wireless  teleg- 
raphy, would  certainly  have  appeared  far  more  strange 
to  our  forefathers  than  does  telepathy  to  us  at  the 
present  day. 

It  is  the  honour  and  duty  of  science  to  enter  with 
a  stout  determination  upon  every  problem  set  by 
nature,  and  to  recognise  that,  if  every  day  by  ceaseless 
labour  it  approaches  nearer  the  truth,  it  never  can 
possess  truth  in  all  its  completeness  and  is  condemned 
continually  to  rectify  the  uncertain  picture  it  has 
)   formed  of  it. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  must  be  admitted  that  the 
(^illusive  irregularity  which  disturbs  our  investigation 
of  the  phenomena  of  higher  life  is  not  peculiar  to 
them,  but  is  to  be  encountered  even  in  the  observa- 
tion of  the  material  world. 

We  no  doubt  imagine  that  we  now  hold  the  fun- 
damental laws  of  physics  and  chemistry,  because  we 
can  see  them  constantly  in  operation;  yet  we  often 
find  that  nature  confronts  us  with  a  wholly  unlooked- 
for  reaction,  which  we  are  afterwards  quite  unable  to 
reproduce.  We  indeed  admit,  without  possibility  of 
contestation,  that  this  is  due  to  the  fact  that  our 
data  were  more  complex  than  we  supposed,  and  that 
we  were  unable  to  take  account  of  those  of  which  we 
were  unaware.  It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the 
same  answer  may  hold  good  of  the  strangest  among 
the  higher  vital  phenomena. 

Physics  still  presents  us  with  a  multiplicity  of 
obscure  facts  for  which  we  have  no  explanation,  and 


^  'i/J^^THE  BORBkR-LA^D  OF  l^CIENCE  ^     289 

we  should  certainly  scout  their  existence  did  not 
observation  confirm  them.  We  need  only  recall  the 
internal  movements  taking  place  in  rigid  bodies,  men- 
tioned in  the  last  chapter,  the  unceasing  radiation  of 
^radium,  and  numerous  other  examples  in  which  our 
science  is  at  fault  before  the  mysteries  of  nature. 

Again,  supposing  that  we  attempt  the  study  of 
atmospheric  phenomena,  especially  of  those  occa- 
sioned by  electricity,  we  encounter  reactions  not  less 
strange  than  those  of  the  higher  life,  and  frequently 
seeming  to  set  the  most  well-established  scientific 
laws  at  defiance.  Such  is  the  case,  for  instance,  with 
the  manifestations  of  so-called  globe  lightning,  which- 
reminds*  one  in  many  ways  of  the  astral  light  at  spirit- 
istic seances;  thereto  might  be  added  all  the  extraor- 
dinary acts  due  to  lightning  in  general,  —  the  sudden 
volatilisation  of  metallic  objects,  the  formation  of 
"  photographs  "  of  neighbouring  objects,  which  ap- 
pear, without  apparent  reason,  upon  the  bodies  of 
persons  who  have  been  struck. 

"In  one  case  the  lightning  burns,  and  its  victim  goes  off  in  a  M^^ 
blaze,  like  a  truss  of  straw;  at  another  time  it  will  reduce  the^^ 
hands  to  ashes,  but  leave  the  gloves  untouched.     Here  it  welds  ^^*^ 
together  the  links  of  an  iron  chain ;  there  it  kills  a  sportsman      >n 
without  the  gun  which  he  held  in  his  hand  going  off.     It  will 
melt  an  earring  without  scorching  the  skin,  strip  a  man  naked      ^^ 
without  doing  him  any  hurt,  or  perhaps  it  may  even  be  satisfied 
with  filching  hat  and  shoes  from  him ;  it  will  photograph  on  a 
child's  chest  the  nest  which  he  was  taking  in  a  tree-top  when  it 
was  struck;  it  will  gild  silver  coins  in  a  purse,  electroplating  the 
contents  from  one  compartment  to  the  next,  without  scathing 
the  possessor.     It  can  instantly  demolish   a  six-foot  wall,   or 
strike  an   ancient  castle,   or  it  can   strike  a  powder-magazine 
without  causing  it  to  explode."  ^ 

1  Camille  Flammarion,  "  L'Inconnu  et  les  Probl^mes  Psychiques." 

19 


290  FUTURE  LIFE 

These  examples,  which  might  easily  be  multiplied, 
are  sufficient  to  show  how  unaccountable  is  the  action 
of  lightning,  a  thousand  times  more  disconcerting, 
perhaps,  than  is  the  action  of  psychic  force.  We  are 
unable  to  supply  any  scientific  explanation,  although 
we  have  to  deal  with  a  mode  of  energy  which  we 
considered  fairly  well  known  to  us,  and  with  an 
action  exerted  in  the  domain  of  inert  matter.  Such 
facts  are  not  nowadays  denied,  although  their  au- 
thenticity is  guaranteed  merely  by  the  evidence  of 
witnesses. 

But  even  when  we  confine  ourselves  to  phenomena 
which  it  is  possible  to  reproduce  at  will,  we  find  that 
the  final  explanation  advanced  by  science  depends 
upon  the  supposition  of  invisible  elements,  such  as 
molecules,  atoms,  and  corpuscles,  material  or  etheric, 
and  it  is  the  complex  working  of  these  hypothetical 
elements  which  bestows  form  upon  material  bodies 
and  determines  their  reciprocal  reactions.  In  fine,  we 
are  always  reduced  to  viewing  the  material  world  as 
governed  by  invisible  elements  which  become  stronger, 
the  smaller  they  are.  We  cannot  certainly  observe 
them  directly,  and  yet  we  admit  their  existence  as 
resulting  necessarily  from  ascertained  facts.  Are  we 
not  therefore  justified  in  resorting  to  the  same  method 
and  in  admitting  the  same  hypotheses  when  we 
attempt  to  explain  the  higher  life,  seeing  that  in 
either  case  nature  denies  us  direct  perception  of  the 
invisible  elements  postulated  in  the  study  of  the 
slightest  phenomenon? 

We  do  not,  therefore,  think  it  possible  for  science 
to  refuse  all  inquiry  into  mysterious  facts  the  study  of 
which  is  calculated  to  throw  light  upon  the  absorbing 


THE  BORDER-LAND   OF  SCIENCE         291 

problem  of  man's  future  destiny.  We  shall  treat 
of  them  as  best  we  can  in  the  following  chapters. 
We  intend  first  to  summarise  the  facts  best  established 
in  this  department  of  research,  such  as  the  radiation 
of  the  odic  fluid,  the  possibility  of  which  can  no 
longer  be  denied  in  principle,  now  that  we  know  of 
the  general  radio-activity  of  matter,  as  we  remarked 
above.  Subsequently  we  shall  attempt  to  show  how 
this  notion  may  help  in  the  explanation  of  other 
extraordinary  facts,  which  it  is  exceedingly  difficult 
at  present  to  deny  absolutely,  albeit  the  authenticity 
of  certain  cases  is  still  the  subject  of  legitimate  doubt. 

Such  a  phenomenon  is  the  externalisation  of  the 
odic  fluid,  which  can  transmit  to  a  distance  a  sense-  •^ 
impression,  an  effort,  or  even  an  act,  of  reasoning' 
perceptible  to  some  one  of  our  senses,  as  in  telepathy. 
Then  we  have  materialisations,  doublings  of  person-    • 
ality,  intelligent  communications  appearing  to  come  ;  \ 
from  invisible  beings,  or  even  from  souls  of  the  dead. 

In  the  case  of  each  of  these  phenomena  we  shall 
endeavour  to  show  how  science  can  view  it  to-day, 
and  whether  by  any  possibility  it  can  be  submitted 
to  the  decisive  test  of  experiment,  after  which  it  might 
rank  among  well-ascertained  scientific  facts. 

As  far  as  concerns  the  problem  of  survival,  and 
particularly  that  of  our  future  destiny,  this  experi- 
mental study  of  the  nature  of  the  human  soul  will 
furnish  us  with  many  precise  data,  and  elements  of 
high  probability  which  were  so  far  lacking ;  we  must, 
however,  not  hide  from  ourselves  that  it  cannot 
result  in  absolute  scientific  certainty,  and  it  would  be 
expedient  to  supplement  it  with  a  renewed  methodi- 
cal study  of  all  the  facts  which  can  shed  light  upon 


292  FUTURE  LIFE 

the  obscure  question  of  man's  destiny,  considered 
only  in  the  present  Hfe. 

We  should  inquire,  for  instance,  whether  from 
birth  man's  career  is  not  already  to  a  certain  extent 
predestined,  as  is  believed  by  the  partisans  of  religious 
fatalism  and  scientific  determinism;  and  in  this  case 
we  should  ascertain  whether  no  sign  of  this  original 
influence  is  visible.  The  ancients  thought  that  such 
signs  were  discernible  in  the  combined  action  of  the 
planets  presiding  over  birth,  and  a  new  school  claims 
to-day  to  have  scientifically  revived  this  doctrine, 
caring  little  for  the  apparently  justified  discredit  into 
which  astrology  has  long  fallen. 

Is  it  not  possible  to  throw  some  light  upon  the 
problem  of  preexistence,  by  studying  infant  prodi- 
gies instinctively  possessed  of  certain  exact  knowl- 
edge, and  able  to  perform  certain  acts  which  they 
have  never  learned  ?  Should  we  not  inquire  whether 
this  is  not  an  exceptional  manifestation  of  a  species 
of  memory  of  a  past  existence? 

The  same  question  indeed  arises  in  cases  of  doubled 
personality,  when  memories  and  ideas  present  them- 
selves which  were  absolutely  unknown  to  the  normal 
consciousness,  and  the  formation  of  which  during  the 
present  existence  is  particularly  difficult  to  explain. 

If  the  astral  body  is  able  to  introduce  into  the  body 
which  it  animates  an  impress  sufficiently  precise  to 
determine  the  course  of  its  present  destiny,  is  it  not 
possible  to  discover  some  manifest  proof  of  its  mys- 
terious intervention? 

We  shall  finally  come  to  investigate  the  much- 
despised  conceptions  which  are  founded  upon  the 
study  of  some  particular  but  apparently  insignificant 


THE  BORDER-LAND  OF  SCIENCE         293 

characteristic,  such  as  the  form  of  the  writing,  the 
features  of  the  face,  the  hnes  on  the  hand,  etc.,  and 
we  shall  inquire  whether  the  contempt  into  which 
they  have  fallen  is  entirely  deserved;  whether  in 
their  whimsical  complexities  there  is  not  some  faint 
ray  of  truth  which  might  be  of  some  assistance  in 
throwing  light  on  the  difficult  problem  that  per- 
plexes us. 

All  these  are  obscure  questions  upon  which  we 
shall  never  possess  absolute  truth,  unattainable  in 
facts  of  a  moral  order.  But  we  must  not  forget  that 
they  may  furnish  an  element  of  the  required  solution, 
and  on  this  account  they  assume  an  interest  which 
forbids  our  contemning  them.  Doubtless  the  day 
will  come  when  science  will  no  longer  refuse  to  make 
them  the  subject  of  exact  inquiry. 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE   ODIC   FLUID 

Lack  of  Direct  Proof  of  the  Existence  of  the  Fluidic  Body.  —  Odic 
Radiation  Imperceptible  to  the  Majority  of  Men.  —  Believed  in  by 
Maxwell,  and  afterwards  by  Mesmer  and  De  Montravel.  —  The  Odic 
Fluid  as  described  by  Deleuze.  —  Researches  of  Drs.  Charpignon 
and  Despine.  —  Experiments  by  Baron  Reichenbach,  who  applied 
the  Name  Od  to  this  Radiation.  —  The  Difference  between  the 
Odic  Radiations  from  the  Right  and  Left  Sides.  —  How  the  Odic 
Fluid  is  transmitted.  —  Not  to  be  confounded  with  the  Magnetic 
Fluid.  —  Reichenbach's  Efforts  to  bring  the  Odic  Fluid  to  the  Per- 
ception of  Ordinary  Men.  —  His  Conclusions  accepted  by  Wharley, 
Chazarein,  Decle,  Barety,  and  De  Rochas.  —  Description  of  the 
Fluid  as  observed  by  De  Rochas.  —  Its  Objective  Existence  not 
yet  a  Scientific  Certainty.  —  Recent  Experiments  in  which  Light 
Objects  are  moved  apparently  by  Odic  Radiation.  —  Baraduc's 
Theory.  —  Answer  to  the  Objection  that  the  Effects  attributed 
to  Od  may  be  due  to  Heat.  —  Radiations  from  Bodily  Organs 
photographed.  —  Experiments  by  Charpentier  and  Blondlot  and 
Maxwell.  - 

il  S  we  have  just  conceived  it,  the  fluidic  body  is 
yLJk  compounded  of  a  number  of  subtile  elements 
X  Jl  which  are  doubtless  arranged  in  a  series  of 
aggregates,  each  operative  in  its  own  particular  do- 
main and  bringing  about  in  the  animal  organism  all 
those  mysterious  actions,  which  matter  is  incapable  of 
performing  alone.  It  governs  organic  life,  receives 
sensory  impressions,  and  transmits  intellectual  con- 
ceptions, yet  in  all  its  manifold  manifestations  it 
remains  unable  to  reveal  itself  directly,  but  is  through- 
out confounded  with  the  physical  body,  from  which 
it  can  escape  only  at  death.     We  are  consequently 


THE   ODIC  FLUID  S95 

always  confronted  with  a  fundamental  difficulty  in 
endeavouring  to  prove  its  distinct  existence. 

Howbeit,  if  direct  observation  is  not  within  our 
power,  we  should  seek,  if  possible,  to  gather  indirect 
evidence  of  the  action  of  the  fluidic  body  in  certain 
manifestations  which  are  perceptible,  and  thus  win 
support  for  the  proposed  theory. 

These  manifestations  must  themselves  vary  accord- 
ing to  the  particular  faculty  involved,  and  according 
as  we  have  to  deal  only  with  sensitivity  or  with 
various  modes  of  intelligence  itself.  The  investi- 
gation of  these  dissimilar  phenomena  will  have  to  be 
carried  out  under  entirely  different  conditions,  which 
will  therefore  entail  different  degrees  of  certainty  in 
the  observations  made  and  in  the  conclusions  based 
thereon. 

The  most  elementary  manifestation  of  all  is  that 
particular  kind  of  radiation  which  has  been  termed 
the  odic  fluid.  To  it  we  shall  devote  the  present 
chapter,  reserving  the  more  complex  phenomena  for 
the  remaining  ones.  This  fluidic  radiation  reveals 
the  action  of  the  etheric  body,  especially  in  its  capacity 
for  maintaining  organic  life.  It  takes  place  normally 
outside  the  cutaneous  envelope  of  the  body,  and  is 
concentrated  chiefly  at  the  sensory  organs  and  ex- 
tremities, especially  the  fingers,  head,  and  hands. 

It  is  constantly  present  in  normal  life,  and  its  ex- 
istence would  therefore  seem  easy  enough  to  prove. 
Unfortunately  it  is  imperceptible  to  the  majority  of 
men.  Under  ordinary  conditions  it  can  be  seen  only 
by  a  few  persons  gifted  with  a  special  visual  sensi- 
tivity permitting  them  to  discern  the  glow  by  which 
it  is  accompanied.     Only  in  exceptional  cases  can  it 


296  FUTURE  LIFE 

be  emitted  with  sufficient  intensity  to  affect  normal 
senses.  As  a  result,  its  existence  is  still  a  contested 
matter. 

However  that  may  be,  this  mysterious  fluid,  which 
was  already  known  in  antiquity,  has  in  our  day  been 
made  the  subject  of  much  research.  We  have  suc- 
ceeded in  establishing  its  fundamental  properties  and 
in  sometimes  demonstrating  its  presence  by  an  ex- 
ternal action  dependent  upon  it,  even  in  cases  where  it 
was  directly  invisible.  Upon  these  investigations  we 
shall  not  here  dwell.  They  will  be  found  epitomised 
in  the  learned  works  of  M.  de  Rochas,  and  it  is  thence 
that  we  have  borrowed  most  of  the  details  which  fol- 
low. We  summarise  them  only,  our  wish  being  rather 
to  emphasise  the  conclusions  which  have  been  based 
upon  them.  ' 

In  1679  ^  Scotch  doctor,  William  Maxwell  by 
name,  published  a  work  on  "  Magnetic  Medicine," 
wherein  he  described  the  properties  of  certain  mate- 
rial rays  emitted  from  the  human  body,  in  which,  he 
says,  "  the  soul  operated  by  its  presence,  giving  them 
energy  and  power  to  act." 

A  century  later,  an  Austrian  doctor,  Anton  Mesmer, 
taking  up  Maxwell's  idea,  declared  the  existence  of  a 
fluid  diffused  throughout  the  universe,  acting  upon 
the  animal  body  and  penetrating  even  into  the  ner- 
vous tissue.  In  the  human  body  it  manifested  proper- 
ties analogous  to  those  of  the  magnet.  He  remarks 
that  the  human  body  presents  contrary  poles,  which 
can,  to  use  his  phrase,  be  "  communicated,  changed, 
destroyed,  or  increased,  and  can  display  the  phe- 
nomenon of  inclination.     The  attractive  or  repellent 


THE   ODIC  FLUID  297 

action  emanating  from  them  is  operative  at  a  distance, 
even  upon  inanimate  objects,  the  presence  of  which 
may  strengthen  and  propagate  it.  It  is  accompanied 
by  the  emission  of  a  matter  so  subtile  as  to  penetrate 
all  bodies  without  noticeable  loss  of  activity." 

Owing  to  these  analogies,  Mesmer  proposed  to 
name  his  new  fluid  animal  magnetism,  although  he 
was  aware  that  in  other  respects  it  differed  essentially 
from  the  fluid  of  natural  or  artificial  magnets. 

An  artillery  captain.  Tardy  de  Montravel,  who 
lived  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century,  wrote  an 
essay  on  "  The  Theory  of  Animal  Magnetism," 
directly  inspired  by  Mesmer's  ideas.  He  remarks  that 
there  are  grounds  for  distinguishing  in  man  a  subtile 
body  formed  from  this  magnetic  fluid,  a  kind  of  mate- 
rial soul  controlling  the  body.  In  support  of  this 
hypothesis  he  remarks  that  every  act  of  volition  is 
necessarily  accompanied  by  a  varying  expenditure  of 
energy,  which  must  be  conveyed  by  the  soul  to  the 
physical  organs  involved,  in  order  to  supply  them 
with  the  requisite  resistance,  and  he  concludes  that 
the  magnetic  fluid  alone  is  able  to  furnish  this  supply. 
He  further  observes  that  all  psychics  are  agreed  that, 
in  the  hypnotic  state,  they  acquire  the  vision  of 
this  fluid,  which  they  can  see  radiating  about  their 
magnetiser. 

These  observations  were  taken  up  and  expanded 
by  Deleuze,  an  assistant  naturalist  at  the  Paris 
Museum,  and  in  1813  he  published  "  A  Critical 
History  of  Animal  Magnetism,"  which  was  much 
esteemed. 

"  Most  psychics,"  he  says,  "  perceive  a  bright  luminous  fluid 
surrounding  their  magnetiser,  and  given  off  with  especial  intensity 


298  FUTURE  LIFE 

from  the  head  and  the  hands.  They  recognise  that  he  is 
able  to  concentrate  this  fluid  at  will,  direct  it,  and  impregnate 
various  substances  with  it.  Many  see  it,  not  only  when  actually 
in  a  state  of  somnambulism,  but  also  during  several  minutes  after 
their  awakening ;  they  find  it  to  possess  an  agreeable  odour  of  its 
own,  which  gives  a  pecuHar  flavour  to  water  and  food.  Some  per- 
sons perceive  the  fluid  when  they  are  magnetised,  although  they 
are  not  in  a  state  of  somnambulism.  I  have  come  across  people 
who  perceived  it  while  magnetising,  but  this  is  extremely  rare. 
Most  somnambulists  believe  that  this  fluid  can  be  concentrated 
in  a  reservoir,  that  it  exists  in  the  stars,  and  that  the  will  of  the 
magnetiser,  when  assisted  by  a  movement  of  the  hand  repeated 
several  times  in  the  same  direction,  guides  the  fluid  and  gives  it 
a  definite  motion.  As  I  have  obtained  these  data  from  all  the 
psychics  whom  I  have  consulted,  and  as  magnetisers  in  all 
countries  have  obtained  the  like,  I  am  compelled  to  admit  the 
existence  of  a  magnetic  fluid."  ^ 

These  observations  were  confirmed  by  other  ex- 
perimentaHsts,  particularly  Dr.  Despine,  of  Aix-les- 
Bains,  and  Dr.  Charpignon,  of  Orleans.  Both  of 
these  doctors  carried  out  separate  researches  and 
summed  up  their  results  in  two  works,  published  in 
1840  and  1843,  respectively. 

Dr.  Charpignon  in  particular  observes  that  certain 
psychics  perceive,  in  addition  to  the  odic  fluid,  a  spe- 
cial glow  surrounding  objects  charged  with  elec- 
tricity. However,  they  clearly  distinguish  these  two 
radiations,  and  never  confound  their  respective  fluids, 
which  fact  would  point  to  a  corresponding  difference 
in  their  nature. 

Dr.  Despine  was  moreover  able  to  generalise  this 
observation  by  demonstrating  that  certain  psychics 
could  determine  the  nature  of  various  metallic  objects 

1  Deleuze,  "  Histoire  Critique  du  Magnetisme  Animal,"  Tome  I., 
p.  81,  quoted  by  Rochas,  "  Les  Frontieres  de  la  Science,"  Paris,  1902. 


THE  ODIC  FLUID  299 

without  requiring  either  to  see  them  with  the  eyes  or 
touch  them  with  the  fingers.  He  hence  concluded 
those  metals  to  be  surrounded  by  a  peculiar  glow  of 
their  own.  He  also  remarks  that  contact  with  these 
objects  causes  a  particular,  clearly  marked  impres- 
sion upon  somnambulists,  and  that  this  varies  accord- 
ing to  the  character  of  the  metal.  Gold,  for  instance, 
possesses  with  them  a  peculiar  aptitude  for  alleviating 
neuralgic  pain. 

The  principal  researches  aiming  at  establishing  the 
existence  of  animal  magnetism  are  due  to  Baron  von 
Reichenbach,  who  published  in  1849  and  1864  two 
important  papers  upon  the  subject.  They  will  be 
found  condensed  in  the  works  of  M.  A.  de  Rochas. 
As  the  result  of  a  great  number  of  methodically  per- 
formed experiments  covering  several  years.  Baron 
von  Reichenbach  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
animal  organism  emits  a  continuous  radiation,  the  in- 
tensity of  which  varies,  however,  according  to  the 
state  of  health,  the  physical  and  moral  conditions, 
the  action  of  external  surroundings,  etc.  Daylight 
increases  the  radiation,  as  do  food  and  physical 
activity;  it  diminishes  at  night,  during  sleep  and 
periods  of  hunger;  generally  speaking,  it  undergoes 
regular  periodical  fluctuations  in  the  course  of  every 
twenty-four  hours.  It  is  perceptible  only  to  psychics, 
or  "  sensitive  "  persons,  and  spreads  over  almost  the 
whole  surface  of  the  human  body,  which  it  renders- 
luminous;  it  is  most  concentrated  on  the  hands,  and 
presents  its  maximum  intensity  upon  the  palms,  at 
the  finger-tips,  in  the  eyes,  in  various  parts  of  the 
head,  at  the  pit  of  the  stomach,  etc.     Tongues  of 


300  FUTURE  LIFE 

light  like  bright  flames  stream  in  straight  lines  from 
the  finger-tips,  eyes,  nostrils,  and  ears. 

Reichenbach  applies  the  name  od  to  this  radiation 
in  order  to  distinguish  it  from  already  known  fluids ; 
it  is  the  manifestation  of  a  force  dividing  the  human 
body  into  two  regions  displaying  opposite  properties, 
much  in  the  same  way  as  the  poles  of  a  magnet.  The 
right  side,  as  a  rule,  gives  off  a  radiation  blue  in 
colour  and  having  a  cool  feeling  to  the  touch,  whereas 
the  left  side  gives  off  a  warm  red  flame.  There  is  a 
similar  contrast  between  the  two  poles  of  a  magnet, 
the  blue  cold  flame  characterising  the  north  pole 
(generally  called  the  negative  pole  in  non-French 
countries,  while  in  France  it  is  known  as  the  positive 
pole),  whilst  the  red,  warm  flame,  on  the  contrary, 
characterises  the  south  pole.  By  analogy  Reichen- 
bach transferred  this  positive  and  negative  termin- 
ology to  the  two  contrary  fluids  into  which  he  divided ,  ^ 
odic  radiation;  the  blue  fluid  he  called  the  negativ^/  j\v^ 
od,  the  red  fluid  the  positive  od.  '  ' 

We  have  just  noted  that  the  former  is  especially 

found  upon  the  right  side  of  the  human  body,  the 

latter   on   the   left   side;   this   polarity   of   the   two 

opposite  sides  of  the  body  is,  however,  by  no  means 

absolute.     Often  enough  it  happens  that  the  corre- 

jsponding  flame-colours  are  reversed  according  to  the 

:  state  of  the  subject,  the  left  side  becoming  blue  and 

jthe  right  red. 

The  odic  fluid  is  transmitted  by  conductivity 
through  various  material  bodies,  solid,  liquid,  or 
gaseous.  This  transmission  generally  takes  place  by 
contact,  and  also  under  conditions  as  yet  imperfectly 
determined.     But  it  may  be  laid  down  that  those 


THE  ODIC  FLUID  301 

conditions  vary  greatly  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
bodies  employed;  as  a  rule,  the  greater  the  cohesion 
of  the  body,  the  better  its  conductivity.  It  must  be 
noted,  moreover,  that  the  odic  state  thus  set  up  is 
dissipated  with  great  rapidity,  as  soon  as  communica- 
tion with  the  fluidic  source  is  interrupted. 

As  to  the  speed  of  odic  conductivity,  it  is  inferior' 
to  that  of  electricity,  but  superior  to  that  of  heat, 
which  goes  to  prove  that  we  are  dealing  with  distinct ' 
phenomena.  Reichenbach  also  states  that  "  sensi- 
tives "  can  always  clearly  distinguish  the  other  fluids 
known  in  physics,  owing  to  the  feelings  which  they 
experience,  and  concludes  that  we  cannot  confuse  the 
od  with  any  of  them.  He  remarks,  for  instance,  that 
most  sensitives  can  support  without  difficulty  an  elec- 
tric discharge  of  great  intensity,  while  the  slightest 
odic  stimulation  brings  about  a  very  marked  reaction. 
In  the  same  way,  objects  subjected  to  heat  may  from 
the  odic  point  of  view  appear  more  cool  than  when 
they  were  actually  cold. 

As  for  magnetism,  it  undoubtedly  presents  many 
close  analogies  with  the  od.  Both  fluids  possess  the 
distinction  of  contrary  poles,  but  it  must  be  noted  that 
whereas  the  odic  fluid  may  be  transmitted  to  and 
accumulated  in  all  natural  bodies,  magnetism  applies 
only  to  an  exceedingly  restricted  number  of  bodies. 
On  the  other  hand,  although  the  positive  od,  with  itSj 
blue  cool  flame,  almost  always  goes  with  the  north 
pole  of  the  magnet,  it  sometimes  happens  that  it  will 
detach  itself  thence  and  concentrate  itself  upon  the 
contrary  pole,  —  a  strange  inversion  which  again 
demonstrates  the  difference  between  the  two  fluids, 
magnetic  and  odic. 


302  FUTURE  LIFE 

Even  so  brief  a  summary  suffices  to  show  the 
interest  attaching  to  the  curious  conclusions  drawn  by 
Reichenbach  from  his  experiments  upon  the  radiation 
of  odic  fluid,  which  he  studied  in  the  cases  of  som- 
nambuHsts  and  sensitives.  But  we  cannot  forget  that 
the  objective  reahty  of  this  fluid  is  still  subject  to 
doubt,  seeing  that  the  facts  adduced  are  beyond  the 
perception  of  the  majority  of  mankind.  In  order  to 
overcome  this  troublesome  objection,  Reichenbach 
neglected  no  opportunity  of  discovering  whether  the 
action  of  the  od  might  not  be  made  visible  to  any  one 
whomsoever,  —  for  instance,  by  its  bringing  about 
the  displacement  of  some  material  object.  He  had 
already  noted  that  certain  minute  objects  such  as 
crystals,  small  metallic  rods,  or  little  glass  discs,  if 
previously  charged  with  odic  fluid  and  held  between 
the  fingers,  acquired  a  rotatory  movement  of  a  peculiar 
kind,  due  apparently  to  some  force  emanating  from 
the  fingers.  The  direction  of  this  rotation  is  deter- 
mined by  the  repellent  effect  of  that  side  of  the  human 
body  which  is  odically  isonomous  to  them.  The  same 
effects  can  be  obtained  when  employing  small  magnets, 
and  in  this  case  the  supposed  odic  action  may  even 
counterbalance  the  magnetic  attraction. 

Reichenbach  believes  that  the  same  explanation 
covers  all  apparently  causeless  movements  of  objects 
when  brought  in  contact  with  the  hands  or  into  their 
vicinity.  Thus  he  explains  table-turning ;  and  he  even 
adds  that  it  is  possible  to  predict  the  conditions  under 
which  such  a  movement  will  take  place,  from  the 
direction  of  the  odic  current,  as  determined  by  the  way 
in  which  the  experimentalists  have  linked  their  hands 
when  forming  a  chain  about  the  table  to  be  raised. 


THE  ODIC  FLUID  303 

Reichenbach's  observations  and  the  astounding  facts 
which  he  proclaimed  were  received  by  the  scientific 
world  with  lively  incredulity.  This  has  not  entirely 
disappeared  to-day.  Nevertheless,  many  scientists  of 
repute  did  not  hesitate  to  repeat  his  experiments  as 
soon  as  they  were  able  to  secure  suitable  subjects,  and 
they  were  enabled  to  verify  the  reality  of  the  facts 
alleged.  We  shall  not  here  recall  the  names  of  all 
the  experimentalists  who  devoted  themselves  to  study- 
ing the  matter  during  the  second  half  of  the  nine- 
teenth century,  not  only  in  P'^rance,  but  in  England. 
They  will  be  found  recorded  in  M.  Rochas's  work 
already  cited.  Among  Englishmen  of  science  should 
be  remarked  the  famous  electrical  engineer,  Fleetwood 
Wharley,  who  declared  on  May  5,  1869,  before  the 
Committee  of  the  London  Dialectical  Society,  that  he 
had  during  his  experiments  with  Mrs.  Wharley  col- 
lected "  proofs  both  numerous  and  decisive  of  the 
existence  of  odic  flames  emanating  from  magnetised 
bodies,  crystals,  and  human  beings."  Among  French 
experimentalists  we  shall  first  mention  Drs.  Chazarein 
and  Deck,  who  endeavoured  to  ascertain  the  exist- 
ence and  direction  of  odic  currents  in  the  human 
body.  Then  comes  Dr.  Barety,  who  rediscovered  the 
facts  already  observed  by  Reichenbach,  of  whose  ex- 
periments he  was  only  vaguely  aware;  and  finally, 
M.  de  Rochas,  whose  name  will  always  remain  asso- 
ciated with  these  delicate  investigations ;  he  was  both 
masterly  and  patient  in  his  handling  of  them,  and  he| 
pursued  them  with  all  the  scientific  exactitude  of 
which  they  are  capable. 

M.  de  Rochas  was  in  1893  enabled  to  experimen- 
talise with  a  young  man  who  possessed  in  a  high 


304  FUTURE  LIFE 

degree  the  faculty  of  discerning  the  od  in  broad 
dayhght,  so  soon  as  his  eyes  had  been  brought  into 
a  certain  condition  of  hypnosis.  In  this  state  the  eye 
displayed  an  extra-physiological  vascular  erethism,  as 
/.was  discovered  by  the  ophthalmoscope/^  As  this  sub- 
ject was  a  draughtsman  by  profession,  he  was  able 
to  fix  his  impressions  upon  paper,  and  thus  to  furnish 
far  more  exact  records  than  the  more  or  less  vague 
verbal  descriptions  with  which  experimentalists  had 
so  far  been  compelled  to  content  themselves. 

It  was  M.  de  Rochas's  desire  to  control  the  state- 
ments of  his  subject  by  performing  a  series  of  ex- 
periments in  one  of  the  laboratories  at  the  Ecole 
Polytechnique,  but  these  were  unhappily  discontinued, 
owing  to  superior  orders.  He  was,  nevertheless,  able 
i  to  ascertain  that  he  was  dealing  with  a  real  phenom- 
'*enon  and  not  merely  with  a  subjective  impression. 
His  researches  led  him  to  the  interesting  conclusions 
which  we  are  about  to  outline. 

The  effluvium  is  a  real  phenomenon  perceived  by 
means  of  the  retina.  It  presents  certain  general  and 
coexistent  characters,  namely,  its  flame-like  form  and 
its  localisation  at  the  extremities  of  long-shaped 
bodies.  The  length,  intensity,  and  colour  of  the  flame 
are,  on  the  contrary,  variable  elements  according  to 
the  subjects,  and  depend  upon  the  state  of  hypnosis 
into  which  they  are  thrown.  Suggestion  may  also 
to  some  extent  vitiate  the  description  gf  the  effluvium. 

Magnetisation  will  induce  effluvia  at  either  ex- 
tremity of  a  piece  of  iron,  whether  it  be  in  the  shape 
of  a  straight  bar  or  of  a  horse-shoe.  The  colour  of  the 
poles  depends  upon  the  direction  of  the  current,  and 
is  the  same  as  the  magnetising  pole  placed  in  contact. 


THE  ODIC  FLUID  805 

The  effluvium  apparently  lasts  as  long  as  the  mag- 
netisation. It  is  rapidly  dissipated  in  the  case  of  soft 
iron,  whereas  with  steel  it  is  permanent.  Observation 
goes  to  show  that  the  effluvia  behave  in  draughts  as 
would  gaseous  flames  under  similar  conditions,  and  it 
must  therefore  be  concluded  that  the  gaseous  mole- 
cules of  the  atmosphere  are  to  some  extent  affected 
by  the  odic  current;  which  fact  explains  why  the 
effluvia  are  sometimes  manifested  by  a  glow  percep- 
tible to  the  eye. 

[  As  may  be  gathered  from  the  preceding  references, 
}  the  various  scientists  who  have  undertaken  to  investi- 
gate odic  fluid  have  all  been  led  to  admit  the  objective  i 
I  existence  of  a  radiation  peculiar  to  living  organisms.!/ 
At  the  same  time,  they  have  had  to  acknowledge  that 
it  is  perceptible  only  to  persons  either  normally  gifted 
with  peculiar  sensitivity  or,  preferably,  thrown  into  a 
state  of  hypnosis.  Although  the  agreement  of  these 
observers  does  certainly  lend  a  value  to  their  common 
conclusions,  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  those 
conclusions  rest  exclusively  upon  evidence  which  is 
always  subject  to  suspicion.  It  still  remains  to  cor- 
roborate them  by  some  experimental  method  free 
from  possibility  of  dispute.  The  moving  of  external 
objects  would  no  doubt  furnish  us  with  the  proof 
requisite,  and  we  have,  indeed,  already  seen  how 
Reichenbach  succeeded  in  causing  objects  held  be- 
tween the  fingers  of  subjects  to  rotate.  As,  how- 
ever, the  movements  obtained  depended  upon  manual 
contact,  there  is  always  reason  to  fear  that  the 
imperceptible  movement  of  the  subject's  hand  may 
have  induced  the  mechanical  action  observed.     To 

20 


306  FUTURE  LIFE 

furnish  decisive  proof,  we  require  movement  at  a 
^iistance. 

I        Various  experimentalists  have  busied  themselves 
I     with  this  question,  and  more  especially  Dr.  Baraduc, 
who,  upon  the  pattern  of  Abbe  Fortin's  magnetometer, 
1     constructed  a  biometer  which,  he  asserts,  allows  not 
only  of  his  demonstrating  this  vital  radiation,  but 
also  of  his  measuring  its  intensity,  which  varies  ac- 
cording to  individuals. 
■        The  essential  portion  of  the  biometer  is  an  annealed 
i    copper  needle  which  is  held  horizontal  by  a  fine  un- 
i    twisted  silk  thread  attached  to  the  middle.    This  per- 
mits of  its  oscillating  freely  when  subjected  to  the 
action  of  external  forces,  however  minute  they  may 
be.     The  whole  apparatus  is  inclosed  in  a  glass  cyl- 
inder so  as  to  do  away  with  all  mechanical  influences 
such  as  might  arise  from  the  agitation  of  the  air.      \ 
/  An  experiment  consists  in  bringing  the  extremities^ 
of  the  fingers  of  the  open  hand  within  a  short  distance 
of  the  glass  wall  of  the  cylinder.     The  hand  should 
be  directed  toward  one  of  the  two  ends  of  the  needle. 
When  it  has  been  held  for  some  minutes  in  the  posi- 
tion indicated,   a  slight  movement  of  attraction  or 
repulsion  will  be  observed  at  the  point  in  question.  / 

These  movements  of  the  needle  are  ascribed  by 
Dr.  Baraduc  to  the  vital  radiation.  It  is  true  that 
they  can  be  observed  in  all  experiments,  and  it  may  be 
briefly  said  that  their  direction  and  degree  vary  ac- 
cording to  the  subject,  his  health,  his  physical  condi- 
tion, and  especially  his  moral  condition. 

If,  as  has  been  done  by  M.  Baraduc,  the  two  hands 
are  simultaneously  brought  into  proximity  to  two 
separate  instruments,  it  will  as  a  rule  be  observed  that 


L 


THE  ODIC  FLUID  307 

the  two  deviations  possess  different  values  and  some- 
times opposite  signs,  the  right  hand,  for  instance,  pro- 
ducing attraction  and  the  left  repulsion,  or  vice  versa. 

f      Similar  observations  have  been  recorded  by  other 

^  experimentalists,  among  whom  are  Drs.  Joire  and 
Geoffriault.  The  latter  somewhat  modified  the  struc- 
ture of  Dr.  Baraduc's  biometer,  reducing  the  appar- 
atus to  a  single  piece  of  straw  suspended  from  a 
non-twisted  silk  thread,  and  he  ascertained  that  the 
straw  was  quite  as  obedient  to  the  action  of  the  vital 
fluid  as  was  the  copper  needle.  (i)r.  Baraduc,  taking 
all  these  observations  together,  sees  in  them  the  mani- 
festation of  a  continuous  exchange  of  forces  going 
on  between  the  living  organism  and  its  etheric  sur- 
roundings; he  views  it,  in  fact,  as  a  kind  of  odic 
respiration  supporting  the  life  of  the  astral  body, 

\    just  as  gaseous  respiration  supports  the  life  of  the 

I   physical  body^ 

^^  This  curious  theory  may  be  found  expounded  at 
length  in  the  learned  work  which  he  has  published, 
entitled  "  Vibrations  of  Human  Vitality."  ^  It  is  no 
doubt  a  bold  conception  and  one  liable  to  be  disputed. 
But,  restricting  ourselves  especially  to  the  odic  fluid, 
we  think  that  it  is  impossible  to  deny  that  the  evi- 
dence adduced  certainly  tends  to  establish  definitively 
its  objective  reality. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  forgotten  that  it  still 
remains  to  be  proved  that  the  deviations  of  the  bio- 
metric  needle  are  amenable  to  no  other  explanation. 
It  has  been  remarked  that,  despite  the  precautions 
taken  to  isolate  the  instrument,  the  needle  might  be 
influenced  by  the  mere  caloric  radiation  of  a  heated 

1  Paris,  Bailliere,  1903. 


308  FUTURE  LIFE 

object  placed  in  its  vicinity.  We  may  therefore  won- 
der whether  in  bringing  his  hands  close  to  the  appar- 
atus he  does  not  exert  an  analogous  influence  quite 
independent  of  all  odic  action.  It  may  no  doubt  be 
replied  that  the  temperature  of  the  human  body  gen- 
erally remains  constant,  and  that  the  variations  in  the 
deviation  of  the  biometric  needle  are  far  in  excess 
of  any  possible  rise  and  fall  of  bodily  temperature. 
If,  therefore,  any  part  of  the  variation  of  the  needle 
is  due  to  heat-radiation  it  can  only  be  a  minute  frac- 
tion ;  and  all  the  rest  must  be  really  brought  about  by 
the  vital  radiation.  But  this  argument  somewhat 
loses  its  cogency  when  we  refer  to  the  observations 
taken  by  Dr.  Branly.  It  will  be  seen  from  his  report 
published  in  the  '*  Bulletin  of  the  Institute  of  General 
Psychology,"  second  year.  No.  2,  that  he  never  ob- 
tained such  wide  deviations  as  those  which  were  daily 
recorded  by  Dr.  Baraduc.  This  fact  may  no  doubt 
be  due  to  the  small  number  of  experiments,  to  the 
peculiar,  perhaps  over-circumspect,  disposition  of  Dr. 
Branly's  subjects,  and  probably  to  the  excessive 
inertia  of  the  apparatus  employed.  But  it  must  be 
admitted  that  hitherto  the  biometer  has  not  yielded  in 
support  of  the  theory  of  odic  fluid  that  absolutely 
decisive  proof  which  we  require. 

Such  precise  proof  has  been  sought  by  means  of 
photography,  and  in  this  direction  numerous  and  by 
no  means  sterile  attempts  have  been  made.  They 
have  at  least  resulted  in  a  contingent  of  new  and 
interesting  facts,  even  if  they  have  not  furnished 
the  irrefragable  proof  that  can  set  all  objections 
at  defiance,  and  which  we  shall  never,  perhaps, 
attain. 


yi^  ^y    (PiniU  jr^^Jf  ^JsJu^^,^^ 

THE  OBIC  FLUID       I  ^  309  ^ 

It  has  been  demonstrated  that  many  persons  have  y 
only  to  place  their  hand  in  the  darkness  within  some  /-/  C 
distance  of  a  sensitive  plate  (dry  or  wet),  when  cer-  c/ 
tain  characteristic  radiations  will  be  found  recorded 
thereon,  easily  distinguishable  by  their  curvilinear 
form  from  the  straight  lines  and  acute  angles  which 
would  under  similar  conditions  6e  obtained  by  an 
electric  current.  ■  Dr.  Baraduc,  who  still  pursues  his 
investigations  with  ardour  and  enthusiasm,  has,  on 
his  part,  obtained  some  particularly  interesting  im- 
pressions by  placing  dry  plates  wrapped  in  black 
paper  in  contact  with  some  important  organ  of 
the  body,  such  as  the  head,  the  heart,  or  even  the 
spleen.  The  resulting  pictures  are  formed,  as  the 
case  may  be,  either  of  luminous  spots  or  of  more 
or  less  fine  lines  interlaced;  they  vary,  he  says, 
according  to  the  moral  condition  of  the  subject, 
and  he  therefore  considers  that  they  are  a  visible 
transcription  of  the  preoccupations  by  which  he  is 
moved.  ^ — ■^' 

Obviously,  this  would  supply  a  very  striking  proof ; 
of  the  activity  of  the  astral  fluid ;  it  would  go  to  show  • 
that  even  thoughts  themselves  may  be  recorded  in  the  ■ 
immensity  of  the  ether,  just  in  the  same  way  as  appar- 
ent phenomena,  and  that  they  are  hence  amenable  to 
the  same  law  of  indestructibility  which  governs  all 
the  manifestations  of  the  universe.     The  authenticity 
of  these  pictures  is,  however,  still  a  matter  of  dispute. 

In  the  first  place,  it  has  been  objected  to  the  use 
of  wet  plates,  that  the  mere  handling  which  they 
undergo  in  the  developing  bath  might  suffice  to  pro- 
duce similar  impressions  upon  a  plate  which  had  not 
been  exposed  at  all,  and  consequently  only  the  images 


SIO  FUTURE  LIFE 

produced  upon  dry  plates  can  be  retained  as  genuine. 
This,  indeed,  is  the  method  pursued  by  Dr.  Baraduc, 
but  it  has  the  drawback  of  yielding  more  frequent 
failures,  and  rarely  succeeds  except  with  very  sensi- 
tive subjects;  so  that  it  records  rather  the  abnormal 
externalisation  of  the  astral  body  than  the  regular 
radiation  of  odic  fluid,  and  it  is  consequently  liable 
to  all  the  objections  which  can  be  made  against  a 
single  experiment  not  renewable  at  will. 

What  we  require,  therefore,  is  a  peculiar  reagent 
suited  to  the  recording  of  these  obscure  radiations, 
and  permitting  of  our  obtaining  regular  impressions 
under  the  conditions  of  normal  life.  This  is  a  pre- 
liminary piece  of  research  upon  which  experimen- 
talists should  concentrate  themselves  if  they  desire 
to  obtain  indisputable  scientific  proof  of  the  existence 
of  an  astral  body. 

We  must  not  omit  to  mention  the  investigations  at 
present  being  carried  out  by  Dr.  Charpentier,  for  the 
results  which  they  have  yielded  have  already  caused 
much  sensation  in  the  scientific  world.  By  using  a 
simple  cardboard  screen  covered  with  a  thin  layer  of 
phosphorescing  calcium  sulphide,  and  by  bringing  it, 
in  the  dark,  successively  into  contact  with  various 
organs  of  the  body,  Dr.  Charpentier  has  succeeded 
in  showing  that  the  screen  assumes  intensified  bril- 
liance when  the  organ  under  observation  is  active, 
whether  it  happens  to  be. a  muscle  which  performs 
some  mechanical  effort,  or  else  a  lobe  of  the  brain 
affected  by  the  work  of  thinking.  In  either  case  the 
resulting  illumination  may  be  explained  by  the 
emission  of  odic  rays,  which  would  therefore  be  iden- 
tified with  the  N  rays  studied  by  Dr.  Blondlot,  and 


THE  ODIC  FLUID  311 

would  lend  scientific  confirmation  to  the  idea  of 
that  necessary  repercussion  which  the  acts  of  or- 
ganic and  intellectual  life  arouse  in  that  invisible 
world  whose  existence  we  suspect  behind  the  veil 
of  matter. 

We  must  not  conclude  without  reference  to  the 
curious  investigations  reported  by  Dr.  Maxwell  in 
his  interesting  work  on  "  Psychic  Phenomena,"  ^  for 
they  form  a  contribution  of  great  value  to  the  study 
of  odic  radiation.  They  were  carried  out  under  the 
conditions  of  ordinary  scientific  observation,  without 
recourse  to  the  intervention  of  hypnotised  subjects, 
and  they  emanated  from  an  experimentalist  who  has 
made  it  his  rule  to  accept  only  indubitable  facts,  and 
hence  to  reject  all  those  in  which  suggestion  can  have 
played  even  the  slightest  part. 

/     Dr.  Maxwell  has  succeeded  in  demonstrating  that 
it  is  possible  for  any  observer  whatsoever  to  obtain  a 
j    certain  perception  of  the  odic  fluid  by  operating  with 
/     diffused  light.     If,  he  says,  an  object  of  dark  hue, 
I      the  back  of  a  chair  for  instance,  be  placed  before  a 
i      window  so  as  to  hide  only  a  part  of  it,  and  the  hands 
i      wide  open  be  stretched  toward  the  dark  screen  thus 
I      formed,  the  palmary  surface  being  turned  toward  the 
i      breast,  care  being  taken  first  to  bring  them  together 
to  the  point  of  contact  and  then  to  move  them  apart 
very  slowly,  one  perceives  a  kind  of  greyish  exhala- 
tion which  seems  to  pass  from  one  hand  to  the  other, 
k    uniting  the  corresponding  fingers. 

This  radiation  is  perceived  by  almost  all  observers 
even  when  not  forewarned,  and  this  disposes  of  all 
possibility  of  suggestion.    As  it  persists  for  some  time, 

1  Paris,  Bailliere,  1904. 


812  FUTURE  LIFE 

it  cannot  be  explained  away  as  a  subjective  impres- 
sion resulting  from  contrast.  Dr.  Maxwell  thinks 
that  in  all  probability  it  is  a  real  phenomenon  afford- 
ing a  fresh  objective  manifestation  of  the  activity  of 
the  odic  fluid. 


CHAPTER   X 

THE  EXTERNALISATION  OF  THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE 

The  Link  between  Soul  and  Body,  —  Visible  Manifestations  of  the 
Ethereal  Body.  —  Externalisation  by  Telaesthesia  and  by  Material- 
isation. —  Difficulty  and  Danger  in  studying  the  Astral  Body.  — 
Only  Exceptional  Persons  suitable  as  Subjects  for  Experimentation. 
—  Pioneer  Investigators.  —  De  Rochas  on  "The  Externalisation 
of  Sensitivity."  —  Bewitchment  by  means  of  a  Simulacrum,  or 
"  Mummy."—  Sensitivity  in  the  "  Mummy"  Analogous  to  Rapport 
during  Hypnosis.  —  Manifestation  of  the  Ethereal  Body  by  so-called 
Spirit  Rapping.  —  Levitation.  —  Bilocation.  —  Luminous  Manifes- 
tations.—  Materialisation.  —  The  Spiritistic  View  of  Spirit  Rapping 
and  Oral  or  Written  Messages.  —  Wonderful  Powers  of  Mediums 
under  Hypnosis  —  Present  Impossibility  of  proving  the  Genuine- 
ness of  Spiritistic  Phenomena. —  The  Author,  proposes  a  Demate- 
rialisation  Experiment  that  would  be  Conclusive. 

THE  etheric  aggregate,  the  existence  whereof 
in  the  human  body  we  have  been  endeav- 
ouring to  ascertain,  forms,  according  to 
theory,  the  necessary  Hnk  between  the  immaterial 
soul  and  the  physical  body.  During  Hfe  it  remains 
attached  within  the  body  which  it  animates,  permeat- 
ing all  its  parts.  It  is,  however,  more  especially  con- 
centrated in  the  brain  and  in  the  network  of  sensory 
and  motor  nerves,  the  activity  of  which  it  keeps  up; 
it  subdivides  itself  in  order  to  penetrate  all  the  organs 
of  the  body,  whereof  it  would  seem  to  espouse  the 
outward  form ;  whence  the  name  "  fluidic  double," 
by  which  it  is  so  often  designated. 

In    normal    life   the   double   manifests    itself    ex- 
ternally by  the  odic  radiation  which  we  have  just 


/       314  FUTURE  LIFE 

^J  discussed.    But  it  also  acts  outside  the  physical  body 

/  by  giving  rise  to  more  complex  manifestations  in- 

TnP       volving  various  faculties  of  the  soul. 

^  In  certain  special  cases  it  can  escape  almost  com- 

V  >v       pletely  from  the  body,  and,  to  use  the  now  accepted 

N  N^term,  externalise  itself;   it  can  reveal  its  presence  by 

phenomena  visible  to  all,   and  the  investigation   of 

those  phenomena  acquires  particular  interest  as  re- 

"gards  the  demonstrative  proof  of  the  existence  of  this 

^''^  hypothetical  aggregate. 

In  the  most  usual  manifestation,  the  fluidic  double 
carries  with  it  the  sensitivity  of  the  subject,  who  no 
longer  feels  any  impression  in  his  physical  body,  now 
become  perfectly  inert ;  yet  the  complete  annihilation 
of  this  faculty  does  not  invariably  result,  for  the  sub- 
ject may,  on  the  contrary,  continue  to  feel  every  action 
exerted  outside  himself  upon  the  invisible  element 
thus  detached.  In  that  case  we  have  to  deal  with 
externalisation  of  the  sensitivity,  —  telsesthesia,  — 
which  regularly  accompanies  the  beginning  of  such 
phenomena,  and  can  nowadays  hardly  be  denied  abso- 
lutely, for  it  has  been  observed  by  numerous  experi- 
menters. It  has  been  well  investigated  by  M.  Rochas. 
In  the  next  stage  the  etheric  body  is  able  to  display 
mechanical  and  physical  properties  of  the  most  ex- 
traordinary character,  which  at  the  first  glance  would 
seem  to  be  in  contradiction  to  the  most  certain  among 
scientific  laws.  The  majority  of  observers  declare 
that  they  have  noticed  sudden  movements  taking 
place  without  apparent  cause,  inexplicable  luminous 
formations,  and  occasionally  even  materialisations  of 
objects,  which  suddenly  appear,  as  if  they  had  been 
brought  by  some  invisible  hand  or  had  been  created 


THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE  315 

on  the  spot.  Sometimes  it  has  been  possible  to  watch 
the  formation  of  a  phantom  exactly  reproducing  the 
external  appearance  of  the  medium's  physical  body. 
But  this  is  not  all;  for,  inexplicable  as  they  may  be, 
these  purely  material  phenomena  do  not  at  all  appear 
to  exhaust  the  astral  activity;  if  the  separation  from 
the  body  be  carried  far  enough,  a  fresh  stage  may 
be  remarked  involving  manifestations  of  a  higher 
order  still,  affecting  the  intelligence  itself,  and  show- 
ing that  it  also  uses  the  fluidic  aggregate  as  its  agent. 

As  we  have  already  mentioned,  it  is  possible  to 
obtain  rational  communications,  deliberate  answers 
to  questions,  even  though  put  only  mentally,  just  as 
they  might  be  given  by  some  invisible  respondent 
gifted  with  the  faculty  of  reading  thoughts.  Some- 
times this  interlocutor  has  apparently  become  mate- 
rialised into  a  phantom,  and  has  attained  to  the 
consistence  of  a  living  being.  It  is  obvious  how  great 
an  interest  attaches  to  proving  the  authenticity  of 
such  extraordinary  phenomena ;  for,  should  it  once  be 
quite  positively  established,  it  would  prove  decisive 
in  the  eternal  discussion  concerning  the  nature  of  the 
human  soul ;  and  as  that  is  the  subject  of  our  essay, 
we  have  made  a  point  of  summarising  the  observa- 
tions directed  to  that  end,  without,  however,  forget- 
ting the  reserve  which  they  still  necessarily  involve. 

First,  it  must  be  acknowledged  that  if  we  already 
encountered  difficulty  in  attaining  certainty  when 
investigating  the  odic  fluid,  which  is  nevertheless  as 
uninterruptedly  constant  as  life  itself,  this  difficulty 
is  increased  a  hundredfold  when  we  come  to  study 
the  astral  body,  since  in  normal  conditions  it  is  well 
nigh  impossible  to  find  it  sufficiently  isolated. 


316  FUTURE  LIFE 

,We  know,  to  be  sure,  that  the  sleep  of  living 
creatures  is  always  accompanied  by  the  loss  of  con- 
sciousness and  by  a  marked  enfeeblement,  if  not  entire 
annihilation,  of  the  sensitivity  of  the  physical  body. 
This  phenomenon,  which  believers  in  an  astral  body 
readily  explain  as  being  due  to  a  momentary  with- 
drawal of  a  part  of  the  fluidic  element,  should  furnish 
an  excellent  occasion  for  verifying  its  existence.  But 
unfortunately,  this  withdrawal  is  always  essentially 
precarious,  and  with  the  slightest  external  stimulus 
sensitivity  and  consciousness  reappear  together,  so 
that  we  are  robbed  of  all  power  to  verify  the  doctrine 
in  the  observation  of  normal  life. 

Let  it  be  added  that  experimental  inquiry  may  often 
entail  painful  results,  sometimes  deleterious  to  the 
health  of  the  subject.  It  has,  therefore,  been  pro- 
posed that  animals  should  be  employed  in  carrying 
out  the  methodical  researches  necessary  to  determine, 
the  nature  of  the  connection  between  the  astral  and 
physical  bodies.  In  that  case  it  would  be  requisite 
to  have  recourse  to  clairvoyant  psychics  capable  of 
discerning  the  externalised  astral  body. 

Whatever  may  be  the  future  use  of  this  method, 
the  experiments  so  far  carried  out  have  always  been 
upon  human  beings.  They  have,  as  a  rule,  been 
effected  upon  certain  exceptional  individuals  endowed 
with  a  particular  temperament  involving  an  increase 
in  the  intensity  of  their  odic  effluvia,  which  tend  thus 
to  withdraw  a  more  or  less  important  part  of  the 
fluidic  body  beyond  the  material  body.  It  might  be 
said  that  these  subjects  are  affected  with  a  species  of 
astral  incontinence,  increasing  under  the  influence  of 
hypnosis. 


THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE  317 

The  hypothesis  of  an  odic  efflux  furnishes  us, 
indeed,  with  a  ready  explanation  of  all  the  recorded 
phenomena.  The  anaesthetised  psychic  is  one  who  has 
externalised  a  portion  of  his  fluid,  and  this  has  become 
confounded  with  that  of  his  magnetiser,  from  whom 
it  henceforth  receives  all  the  impulses  it  is  capable 
of  receiving.  In  like  manner  the  spiritistic  medium, 
who  transmits  communications  of  which  he  has  no 
consciousness,  has  also  allowed  a  portion  of  his  astral 
fluid  to  escape,  and  this  can  then  manifest  a  certain 
intellectual  activity  without  his  being  aware  of  it. 

If  it  is  desired  to  support  this  general  explanation 
by  more  precise  observations,  —  if  it  is  desired  for 
instance  to  obtain  an  external  localisation  of  the  sen- 
sitivity, —  a  new  selection  will  have  to  be  made.  Only 
the  best  trained  subjects  can  be  retained,  and  these 
will  have  to  be  rigorously  selected  out  of  a  class  which 
is  in  itself  exceptional.  The  choice  is  especially  diffi- 
cult to  make  when  a  realisation  of  the  more  delicate 
phenomena  is  aimed  at,  such  as  luminous  apparitions, 
or  materialisations  accompanied  by  intellectual  mani- 
festations ;  for  they  can  be  obtained  only  from  certain 
known  subjects  to  whom  all  experimentalists  are 
obliged  to  have  recourse.  We  may  readily  see  how 
restricted  becomes  the  field  of  possible  observations 
and  also  the  power  of  the  conclusions  to  be  deduced 
therefrom. 

Yet  they  cannot  legitimately  be  rejected,  for  the 
history  of  the  past  holds  numerous  examples  upon 
record,  and  present  experience  gives  to  these  a  fresh 
probability,  showing  as  it  does  that  analogous  phe- 
nomena may  still  quite  possibly  be  realised.  During 
the  last  thirty  years  eminent  scientific  men,  taking 


318  FUTURE  LIFE 

little  account  of  jibing  criticisms,  have  devoted 
themselves  to  the  study  of  this  attractive  but  ardu- 
ous problem,  and,  in  France  as  well  as  abroad,  they 
have  at  last  succeeded  in  establishing  some  of  the 
facts  with  a  probability  approximating  to  certainty. 
Among  the  foremost  in  France  as  pioneers  we  should 
especially  mention  Dr.  Richet  and  M.  de  Rochas,  ^^^ 
who  have  handled  these  difficult  matters  with  meri-v  ^ 
torious  courage  and  freedom  from  bias,  always  having 
a  care  for  scientific  precision.  U^-i^ 

Their  combined  efforts  have  had  the  effect  of  shak-   <^^ 
ing  the  prevalent  prejudice,  and  specialists  in  mental     ja 
disease,  in  their  pursuit  of  the  study  of  hypnotism,       / 
have  confirmed  the  exactness  of  their  observations,  in 
principle  at  least.    Hypnotism  has  now  won  scientific 
recognition,  and  is  represented  in  France  by  three 
great    schools,    each   directed   by   scientists   of   high 
standing,  which,  though  they  may  yet  differ  as  to  the 
explanation  to  be  given  of  its  mysterious  phenomena, 
agree,  nevertheless,  in  asserting  the  objective  reality 
of  most  of  them ;  whilst  latter-day  medicine  no  longer 
hesitates  to  regard  magnetism  as  a  highly  efficacious 
therapeutic   agency,    which    it   was   wrong   to   have 
despised. 

We  imagine  that  it  is  no  longer  permissible  to  deny 
the  reality  of  such  phenomena  a  priori,  although  we 

H  quite  admit  that  in  a  great  number  of  cases  it  is  still 
*^'^en  to  scientific  objections.  But,  since  it  is  impos- 
sible for  us  here  to  go  into  all  the  details  which  a 
complete  discussion  would  entail,  we  shall  limit  our- 
selves to  noticing  in  principle  the  main  observations 
to  be  gathered  from  the  different  orders  of  phenomena 
investigated,  and  we  shall  refer  the  reader  who  is 


THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE  319 

desirous  of  studying  the  problem  in  greater  detail 
to  the  special  publications  so  numerous  nowadays,  r- 

These  singular  phenomena,  which  show  sensitivity 
to  be  a  property  essentially  distinct  from  the  physical 
body,  which  in  itself  is  inert  like  all  matter,  have 
been  made  the  subject  of  special  inquiry  by  M.  de 
Rochas,  who  has  formulated  the  laws  governing  them, 
in  his  interesting  work  on  "  The  Externalisation  of 
Sensitivity." 

"After  the  first  passes,"  he  tells  us,  "the  sensitivity  of  smell 
and  that  of  the  skin  disappear,  and  the  subject  may  be  pinched, 
pricked,  or  even  burned,  and  ammonia  can  be  placed  beneath  his 
nose,  without  his  noticing  anything,  but  he  continues  to  hear  and 
to  see. 

"  After  a  certain  lapse  of  time,  variable  not  only  according  to 
the  subject,  but  also  according  to  the  character  of  the  sensitivi- 
ties, these  latter  reappear  under  a  different  form,  now  being  mo- 
nopolised by  the  magnetiser  and  those  whom  he  has  charged  with 
his  fluid.  Moreover  the  sense  of  touch,  instead  of  being  resident 
as  usual  upon  the  surface  of  the  skin,  now  spreads  beyond  the 
body  according  to  definitely  ascertained  laws. 

"  Finally  the  memory,  after  having  gradually  lost  hold  upon 
recent  facts,  recurs  to  those  of  an  earlier  date,  and  ends  by  also 
becoming  '  specialised '  for  the  magnetiser,  in  the  sense  that 
the  subject  forgets  everything,  family  and  friends,  and  henceforth 
recognises  but  two  persons  in  the  world,  the  magnetiser  and  him- 
self. What  is  more  remarkable  still  is  that  the  subject,  despite 
all  this,  retains  his  intelligence  and  the  recollection  of  his  own 
language,  so  that  he  continues  to  reason  and  to  speak  just  as  if  he 
were  in  a  waking  state. 

''At  the  beginning  of  externahsation  a  light  mist  forms  about 
the  body,  perceptible  only  to  clairvoyants,  and  this  by  degrees 
condenses  and  becomes  more  brilliant,  finally  assuming  the  ap- 
pearance of  a  thin  layer  three  or  four  centimetres  from  the  skin 
and  following  all  the  contours  of  the  body. 

**  If  the  magnetiser  acts  upon  this  luminous  layer  in  any  manner 


FUTURE  LIFE 

..,.^.,,.vfh2.isotver^   the  subject  experiences  precisely   the   same  sensa- 
^  '  '  tion  as  if  the  action  were  exerted  actually  upon  his  skin,  but  he 

y/^  r  I  feels  nothing  or  next  to  nothing  if  it  is  exerted  elsewhere.  He 
^^  ^  \  also  feels  nothing  unless  the  action  emanates  from  a  person  en 
rapport  with  the  magnetiser.  Should  magnetisation  be  carried 
to  a  still  higher  degree,  a  series  of  equidistant  layers  six  or  seven 
centimetres  apart,  double  the  distance  of  the  first  layer  from  the 
skin,  forms  itself  around  the  subject,  who  is  sensitive  to  touch, 
pricking,  or  burning,  only  upon  these  layers,  which  occasionally 
succeed  one  another  to  a  depth  of  from  two  to  three  metres  and 
interpenetrate  and  intercross  without  becoming  modified  in  any 
appreciable  manner,  their  sensitivity  decreasing  in  proportion  as 
they  are  farther  removed  from  the  body.  After  a  certain  lapse 
of  time,  which  may  vary,  but  generally  after  the  third  or  fourth 
lethargic  phase,  the  concentric  layers  manifest  two  maxima  of 
intensity,  one  upon  the  subject's  right  side  and  one  upon  his 
left,  and  two  poles,  as  it  were,  of  sensitivity  are  there  formed." 

If  within  the  field  thus  determined  be  introduced 
material  objects,  as,  for  instance,  a  glass  of  water, 
it  will  be  found  that  they  become  charged  with  the 
subject's  sensitivity,  which  they  may  for  some  time 
retain,  even  when  withdrawn  beyond  the  sensitive 
layers.  If  the  sensitised  liquid  be  touched  ever  so 
lightly,  this  is  felt  by  the  subject,  and  he  experiences 
precisely  the  same  sensations  which  he  would  in  the 
normal  state  from  direct  contact.  The  liquid  has,  to 
use  the  expression  of  the  ancient  alchemists  now 
revived,  become  his  "  mummy  "  and  in  it  he  concen- 
trates all  the  sensitive  part  of  his  being. 

This  curious  experiment  realises,  in  a  way,  the  old 
practice  of  bewitchment  by  means  of  a  simulacrum 
(envoufement) ,  and  shows  that  it  was  no  mere  fig- 
ment of  the  disordered  imagination  of  past  ages,  and 
it  ought  henceforth  to  be  retained  in  support  of  the 
teaching  of  ancient  schools.     We  may  remark  that 


THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE  321 

this  experiment  holds  good  with  other  substances 
besides  water;  generally  speaking,  with  all  such  as 
store  up  odours,  —  for  example,  liquids  and  viscous 
bodies,  and  in  certain  cases  iron  and  silk  can  serve  as 
mummies.  We  have,  moreover,  shown  in  a  passage 
quoted  from  Deleuze  that  he  also  had  remarked  this 
externalisation  of  the  sensitivity  into  foreign  bodies. 
This  localisation  may  occasionally  affect  another 
sense  as  well  as  that  of  touch,  —  for  example,  hearing 
and  smelling;  and  M.  de  Rochas  records  various 
experiments  in  which  it  was  proved  that  subjects  could 
hear  sounds  at  a  distance,  or  smell  a  definite  odour, 
through  the  medium  of  their  mummies,  but  he 
acknowledges  that  personally  he  has  never  been  able 
to  verify  the  fact  under  completely  satisfactory  con- 
ditions. Generally  speaking,  it  should  be  added  that 
these  experiments  are  extremely  difficult  to  perform 
successfully,  and  this  is,  indeed,  the  principal  objec- 
tion to  which  M.  de  Rochas's  experiments  are  liable. 
The  suppression  of  sensitivity  in  the  physical  body  is 
always  easily  demonstrated  at  the  beginning  of  hyp- 
nosis; but  its  reappearance  at  a  given  point  remains 
an  exceptional  phenomenon,  showing  that  in  the 
majority  of  cases  the  odic  phantom,  if  it  does  exist, 
is  devoid  of  all  consistence. 

It  should,  however,  be  remarked  that  the  locali- 
sation of  the  sensitivity  in  the  mUmmy  is  closely  anal- 
ogous to  the  situation  created  by  the  state  of  rapport 
during  hypnosis,  for  then,  too,  the  subject  receives 
at  a  distance  all  the  impressions  to  which  his  mag- 
netiser  is  subjected,  just  as  he  does  in  the  case  of  the 
mummy.  The  state  of  rapport  is  to-day  no  longer 
disputed   as   a  matter   of   current   observation,    and 

21 


Sn  FUTURE  LIFE 

it  would  therefore  not  seem  possible  to  reject  the 
external  localisation  of  the  sensitivity  simply  for 
the  reason  that  it  is  difficult  to  prove. 

M.  de  Rochas  has  moreover  succeeded  in  showing 
that  the  formation  of  the  equidistant  sensitive  strata, 
which  he  observed  about  the  physical  body,  is  easily 
explicable  from  a  scientific  point  of  view,  if  we  sup- 
pose a  sensory  impression  to  be  transmitted  by  a 
vibratory  motion  of  the  ether,  akin  to  that  transmit- 
ting light.  It  is  possible,  indeed,  by  calculation  to 
find  points  of  maximum  and  minimum  activity,  that 
is,  wave-crests  and  wave-troughs,  and  the  interfer- 
ences which  are  always  to  be  observed  when  the  vibra- 
tory movement  is  generated  from  two  distinct  sources 
having  different  periods. 

All  that  we  need  admit  is  that  the  effluvia  corre- 
spond with  the  two  great  rhythmic  movements  of  the 
body,  that  is,  the  beating  of  the  heart  and  the  respi- 
ration; and  since  the  period  of  the  former  is  about 
three  times  shorter  than  that  of  the  latter,  inter- 
ferences are  the  necessary  result,  and  these  are 
manifested  by  the  formation  of  concentric  strata 
surrounding  the  physical  body.  These  strata  are  in 
fact  at  equal  distances  one  from  another,  as  the  theory 
requires  which  regards  them  as  so  many  successive 
wave-troughs,  and  the  insensitive  surface  of  the  skin 
occupies  the  place  of  an  inactive  wave-crest  at  a 
distance  of  half  a  normal  wave's  length  from .  the 
nearest  layer. 

We  have  here,  it  is  clear,  to  deal  with  a  theoretical 
view  of  particular  interest,  and  one  would  like  to  be 
able  to  test  it  by  the  application  of  mathematical 
formulae.     Unhappily  we  have  no  precise  data  as  to 


THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE  323 

the  speed  at  which  the  effluvium  is  propagated,  and 
this  forms  an  essential  element  in  any  calculation. 

The  most  simple  manifestations  of  externalisation 
of  the  fluidic  double  are  usually  of  a  mechanical  na- 
ture, especially  when  they  come  about  spontaneously. 
They  then  generally  consist  in  a  definite  number  of 
knocking  sounds  heard  either  in  furniture  or  walls; 
on  other  occasions  objects  are  moved  without  appar- 
ent cause,  in  the  immediate  vicinity  but  without  the 
knowledge  of  the  medium.  Since  attention  has 
been  directed  to  these  strange  phenomena,  they 
have  been  found  to  occur  pretty  frequently,  and 
it  is  no  longer  possible  to  completely  deny  their 
existence. 

In  the  interesting  work  which  we  previously  men- 
tioned, Dr.  Maxwell,  who  has  made  "  raps  "  the  sub- 
ject of  especial  study,  asserts  that  he  has  been  able 
to  verify  their  occurrence  in  broad  daylight  and  with- 
out any  contact  with  the  medium;  he  adds  that  to 
his  mind  they  are  scientific  facts,  and  are  entitled  to 
a  place  among  physical  phenomena. 

Analogous  instances  are  to  be  encountered  in  the 
lives  of  the  saints,  in  the  history  of  mystics  irrespec- 
tive of  any  particular  religion,  in  the  extraordinary 
performances  of  the  Hindu  fakirs.  We  are  told  that 
the  bodies  of  the  saints,  when  they  were  rapt  in 
mystic  ecstasy,  varied  in  weight  to  an  astounding 
degree ;  so  much  so,  indeed,  that  sometimes  they  were 
lifted  from  the  earth  and  remained  long  suspended 
in  the  air.  This  is  the  phenomenon  known  as  levita- 
tion ;  numerous  examples  of  it  occur  in  religious  his- 
tory and  have  been  collected  by  M.  de  Rochas  in  a 


324  FUTURE  LIFE  ^ 

most  interesting  volume.    Certain  mediums  have  been 
able  to  reproduce  it.  Cnnixi' 

At  other  times  an  ethereal  phantom,  externalised  /j> 
from  the  physical  body,   has  appeared  to   ordinary  ^ft 
persons  and  has  preserved  the  complete  appearance 
of  the  body  from  which  it  emanated.     This  phenom- 
enon is  known  as  bilocation.     Instances  of  it  also  are 
common  in  the  lives  of  the  saints,  and  it  has  likewise 
been  met  with  in  the  case  of  divers  mediums.     The 
reality  of  similar  phenomena  has  been  proved  to  a 
certain  extent,   as  we  mentioned  before;    observers 
have  employed  all  the  tests  and  the  most  accurate 
apparatus    with    which    latter-day    science    furnishes 
them,  nrhus  it  has  been  possible  to  record  variations    »] 
of  weight  and  transmissions  of  force  by  employing  <^ 
the  balance  and  dynamometer?) 

Under  the  influence  of  a  medium  acting  from  a 
distance  either  without  any  contact  whatever  or  with 
the  connection  only  of  a  thread  of  no  resistance,  it 
has  been  possible  to  prove  clearly  that  the  dial-hand 
of  the  apparatus  moved  in  a  manner  which  could 
not  be  caused  in  any  .other  way.  It  has  also  been 
possible  to  take  instantaneous  photographs  showing 
an  object  in  absolute  process  of  transportation  and 
upheld  in  the  air  without  any  apparent  support 
whatsoever. 

Phenomena  occur,  in  fact,  just  as  if  the  medium's 
arm  were  fluidically  prolonged,  and  thus  acted  upon 
a  remote  object,  raising  or  lowering  it  at  will.  Per- 
haps we  may  suppose,  as  does  M.  de  Rochas,  that  the 
fluid  externalised  is  capable  of  impregnating  a  remote 
object,  just  as  in  the  normal  state  it  acts  on  the  vari- 
ous bodily  organs.    The  medium  would  then  be  able 


THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE  325 

to  command  the  object  thus  sensitised  precisely  as  if 
it  were  one  of  his  own  Hmbs. 

It  must,  however,  be  acknowledged  that  those  phe- 
nomena occur  almost  invariably  in  darkness.  This 
fact  may  doubtless  be  explained  by  supposing  that 
light  dissolves  the  odic  fluid  and  deprives  it  of  all 
consistence.  But  it  is  none  the  less  true  that  this 
objection  largely  diminishes  the  probative  force  of 
observations  made  under  such  conditions.  It  forces 
us  to  multiply  the  tests,  and  makes  it  hopeless  for  us 
to  look  for  absolute  certainty. 

But  apart  from  mechanical  actions,  the  externali- 
sation  of  the  odic  phantom  may  be  revealed  by  lumi- 
nous manifestations,  by  the  appearance  of  transient 
lights,  flashes,  and  phosphorescent  nebulae  that  form 
themselves  momentarily  in  the  vicinity  of  the  medium 
and  are  indeed  capable  of  producing  an  impression 
upon  a  photographic  plate. 

In  certain  cases,  although  these  are  extremely  rare, 
the  lights  become,  as  it  were,  condensed  and  assume  a 
likeness  to  some  part  of  the  human  body,  such  as  the 
hand  or  face.  At  the  same  time  such  persons  as  are 
near  to  the  medium  feel  as  if  they  were  being  touched, 
sometimes  by  a  visible  hand  belonging  to  an  invisible 
being;  this  hand,  however,  vanishes  and  melts  away 
upon  any  attempt  to  touch  or  grasp  it.  It  has,  how- 
ever, been  possible  in  such  cases  to  secure  distinct 
imprints  of  a  hand,  or  even  of  a  face,  upon  soft  wax, 
and  these  imprints  have  the  appearance  of  being 
caused,  even  down  to  the  most  trifling  details,  by  some 
living  being.  Occasionally  the  materialisation  becomes 
so  definite  as  to  result  in  a  material  phantom,  quite 
perceptible  to   the   touch,   but   afterwards    suddenly 


FUTURE  LIFE 

dissolving,    although   during   its   brief   apparition   it 
manifests  all  the  peculiarities  of  physical  life. 

Intellectual  phenomena  do  not  in  reality  consti- 
tute a  class  distinct  from  those  of  a  purely  physical 
order.  As  a  rule  they  accompany  the  latter,  and  this 
shows  how  difficult  it  is  to  distinguish  the  various 
elements  of  which  the  externalisation  of  the  etheric 
body  appears  to  be  composed.  To  limit  ourselves, 
for  instance,  to  such  simple  actions  as  raps.  It  will 
generally  be  remarked  that  the  knocking  sounds  pro- 
duced apparently  obey  some  external  intelligence,  for 
by  their  arrangement  they  usually  express  some  defi- 
nite and  deliberate  meaning.  The  spiritistic  school 
regards  them  as  a  sign  of  the  activity  of  disembodied 
spirits  seeking  to  communicate  with  the  living  by 
means  of  the  fluid  borrowed  from  the  medium.  By 
reason  of  the  particular  interest  attaching  to  this 
hypothesis  we  shall  devote  to  it  a  chapter  apart.  To 
restrict  ourselves  for  the  moment  to  the  relation  of 
facts,  we  may  remark  that  these  typtological  com- 
munications are  not  the  only  intellectual  manifesta- 
tions obtainable  by  experiment.  Certain  mediums, 
when  in  a  state  of  trance,  can  give  oral  and  written 
messages  of  which  they  retain  no  recollection  in  thai 
waking  state.  These  messages  may  relate  to  mattersi 
of  which  the  medium  is  entirely  ignorant;  they  may' 
disclose  unknown  facts;  they  may  even  be  couched 
in  a  language  with  which  the  medium  is  unacquainted. 
Everything,  in  fact,  occurs  as  if  the  medium  were 
merely  the  unconscious  agent  of  some  invisible  in- 
telligence which  had  taken  possession  of  his  etheric 
body  and  used  it  as  a  means  for  acting  upon  the 


THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE  327 

organs  of  the  material  body.  As  we  said  when 
speaking  of  spiritism  previously,  this  invisible  mind 
sees  with  the  medium's  eyes,  hears  with  his  ears, 
speaks  with  his  lips,  and  writes  with  his  hand. 

It  may  even  happen  that  the  medium's  body  is 
occupied,  not  by  one,  but  by  several  unknown  intel- 
ligences simultaneously,  as  if  they  had  portioned  out 
the  fluidic  body  among  themselves,  and  each  acted 
upon  the  organ  corresponding  to  the  particular  part 
assigned  to  it.  Reference  to  the  transactions  of  the 
London  Society  for  Psychical  Research  will  show  that 
Mrs.  Piper,  one  of  the  mediums  experimented  with, 
was  in  certain  cases  able  to  give  as  many  as  three 
communications  simultaneously,  each  relating  to  some 
different  subject.  The  first  was  delivered  orally,  the 
other  two  by  the  right  and  left  hands,  Mrs.  Piper 
thus  apparently  obeying  three  perfectly  distinct  ex- 
ternal impulses. 

'A  written  communication  does  not  always  involve 
the  employment  of  the  medium's  fingers,  for  certain 
observers  profess  to  have  obtained  automatic  writing 
without  any  intervention  of  a  material  agent.     It 
should  also  be  remarked  that  the  invisible  operator 
thus  disclosed  appears  to  enjoy  faculties  higher  than 
those  possessed  by  mankind  in  its  present  condition. 
Very   frequently  he   can   read   thought,    see  things  I  f\p^^ 
removed  beyond  human  sight,  recall  the  past,  and  L^j-jJ^* 
sometimes  afford  a  glimpse  of  the  future,  as  if  the  \\a/Cf^ 
intelligence,  when  freed  from  the  clogs  of  the  physical  /  C^u/, 
body  and   illumined  perhaps  by  the  rays  of  some 
higher  light,  could  freely  penetrate  the  ether-world 
and  directly  interpret  its  unceasing  vibrations.     Per- 
haps it  may  be  able  to  look  upon  pure  ideas,  which 


328  FUTURE  LIFE 

are  imperceptible  to  our  crude  senses,  for  it  seems  to 
possess  a  sort  of  general  vision  permitting  it  to  em- 
brace at  once  the  present  and  the  past  and  to  peer 
into  the  birth  of  the  future,  as  if  it  could  realise  that 
miraculous  contemplation  of  all  things  of  which  we 
spoke  above. 

The  mere  enumeration  of  the  strange  phenomena 
which  we  have  just  briefly  summarised  demonstrates 
how  important  they  are  to  any  study  of  the  human 
soul,  and  also  what  interest  attaches  to  proving  their 
undeniable  authenticity.  Whatever  interpretation  is 
to  be  given  to  these  phenomena,  or  whatever  conclu- 
sion is  to  be  drawn  therefrom,  it  would  in  itself  be 
all-important  to  prove,  with  all  scientific  severity,  that 
these  disconcerting  observations  truly  correspond  with 
reality,  and  are  not  the  result  of  a  mere  illusion  upon 
the  part  of  experimentalists.  This  is,  unhappily,  a 
point  which  it  is  as  yet  exceedingly  difficult,  if  not 
impossible,  to  decide,  although  it  involves  only  a 
matter  of  fact.  We  have,  indeed,  to  deal  with  facts 
which  are  not  perceptible  to  all  indiscriminately,  and 
which  cannot  be  reproduced  at  will.  Odic  radiation 
is  visible  only  to  the  sensitive ;  externalisation  of  the 
sensitivity,  and  automatic  communications,  are  psy- 
chological phenomena  which  it  is  impossible  for  us 
to  follow  into  the  inner  depths  of  the  subject's  con- 
sciousness ;  as  to  mechanical  actions,  they  are  far  too 
often  obtained  without  sufficient  test  of  their  truth, 
while  the  photographic  views  of  them  are  not  always 
above  suspicion. 

After  all,  the  authenticity  of  these  phenomena 
rests  on  the  good  faith  of  their  observers,  who  have 


THE  ETHEREAL  DOUBLE  329 

almost  always  been  persons  of  high  sense  of  honour, 
incapable  of  wilful  deception,  or  upon  the  evidence 
of  eminent  men  of  science  who  have  been  trained  in 
the  severe  school  of  experimental  method.  We  may 
be  quite  sure  that  they  have  taken  all  the  precautions, 
possible  to  avoid  error ;  but  we  cannot  conceal  the 
fact  that  they  themselves,  when  they  ponder  upon  the 
scene  which  they  have  witnessed,  are  not  free  from 
uneasiness  lest  some  detail  may  have  been  overlooked 
which  would  have  modified  their  appreciation  of  it. 
We  must,  therefore,  admit  that  although  the  phenom- 
ena may  present  themselves  to  us  with  increasing 
probability,  based  as  they  are  upon  the  concurrence 
of  a  growing  number  of  observations,  repeated  under 
varying  conditions,  yet  we  do  not  possess,  and  may 
indeed  never  possess,  absolute  certainty,  which  flies 
before  us  despite  all  our  efforts  to  seize  upon  it. 

Nevertheless  it  would  be  of  high  interest  could  we 
obtain  the  irrefutable  evidence  for  which  mankind  has 
so  long  and  so  vainly  sought.  It  would  seem  that  we 
shall  never  do  so  unless  we  succeed  in  constituting, 
by  the  agency  of  invisible  forces,  a  permanent  mate- 
rial object  which  it  would  be  quite  impossible  to  pro- 
duce by  ordinary  means,  for  it  would  in  itself  possess 
a  probative  force  independent  of  the  evidence  of  the 
witnesses  of  the  experiment.  Such  an  idea,  at  the 
first  glance,  appears  no  doubt  utterly  unrealisable,  and 
this  shows  the  difficulty  of  the  undertaking.  Yet  be 
it  remarked  that  materialisations  of  inert  objects, 
which  subsist  after  their  formation,  instead  of  be- 
coming again  disintegrated  as  do  phantoms,  lend 
themselves  better  than  all  others  to  experimental  veri- 
fication, and  observers  might  perhaps  have  recourse 


FUTURE  LIFE 

to  them  with  utiHty.  We  think  it  may,  therefore,  be 
interesting  from  this  point  of  view  to  suggest  to 
them  a  test,  the  success  of  which,  were  it  reaHsed, 
would  seem  of  a  nature  to  furnish  a  decisive  argument. 
We  would  propose  that,  in  the  course  of  a  demate- 
rialisation  experiment,  of  two  rings,  without  joint,  cut 
from  two  blocks  of  different  organic  materials,  say 
ivory  and  wood,  one  should  be  made  to  penetrate  the 
other.  It  is  reported  that  Zollner  succeeded  in  obtain-  \ 
ing  such  a  result  by  the  mere  operation  of  psychic  \ 
force.  But,  as  he  doubtless  employed  two  manu- 
factured metallic  rings,  it  may  always  be  suspected 
that  a  substitution  was  effected  without  being  per- 
ceived by  those  present.  The  only  doubt  which  could 
be  raised  in  the  experiment  here  proposed  would  be 
as  to  whether  one  of  the  two  rings  had  not  been 
cunningly  joined.  Such  an  objection  would,  of 
course,  lose  all  its  force,  supposing  a  union  were 
brought  about  which  is  unknown  to  nature  and  in- 
capable of  being  effected  by  human  skill.  In  that  case 
the  utmost  criticism  could  only  suggest  that  one  of 
the  rings  had  been  cleverly  soldered  at  an  invisible 
joint;  but  then  the  joint  would  have  to  be  pointed 
out,  and  the  possibility  be  proved  of  effecting  it  under 
such  convincing  evidence  of  continuity. 


CHAPTER   XI 

MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES.      TELEPATHY 

Several  Kinds  of  Telepathic  Impression.  —  Recent  Investigations 
giving  New  Insight  into  the  Human  Organism. —  Spontaneous  Telep- 
athy described. —  Telepathy  distinguished  from  Pure  Hallucina- 
tion. —  Points  to  be  determined  in  making  this  Distinction.  — 
Investigations  made  from  1883  to  1886  by  the  London  Society  for 
Psychical  Research.  —  The  Appearance  of  a  Phantom  and  the 
Death  of  the  Person  not  always  Simultaneous.  —  Investigations  by 
the  International  Congress  of  Experimental  Psychology,  Paris,  1889, 
and  by  Flammarion,  1899.  —  The  Proportion  of  Coincidences  in  a 
Large  Number  of  Cases  taken  as  a  Test  of  Telepathic  Manifestations. 

—  Spontaneous  Telepathic  Manifestations  explained.  —  Facts  show- 
ing that  such  Manifestations  require  a  Certain  Concurrence  of 
Circumstances.  —  Experiments  in  Transmission  of  Thought  and 
Images,  by  Richet,  Gilbert,  Janet,  and  Others. —  Experimental  Telep- 
athy differs  somewhat  from  Spontaneous.  —  The  Vibration  Theory. 

—  These  Vibrations  explained  by  Analogies.  —  The  Action  of  Telep- 
athy Uncertain  as  that  of  Lightning.  —  Compared  to  Wireless 
Telegraphy.  —  The  Objective  Existence  of  Ideas.  —  The  Psychic 
Image  apparently  independent  of  Space  and  Time. 

WE  have  just  seen  how  the  fluidic  double  can 
manifest  its  action  in  the  immediate  neigh- 
bourhood of  the  subject  by  giving  rise  to 
certain  strange  but  marked  phenomena,  seeing  that 
they  are  perceptible  to  all  present  under  identical  con- 
ditions. We  shall  now  have  to  record  facts  of  another 
and  even  more  mysterious  order,  in  which  the  psychic 
force  appears  to  be  capable  of  acting  at  any  distance 
whatsoever,  but  as  a  rule  without  causing  any  out- 
wardly visible  sign.  It  produces  an  impression  only 
upon  the  brain  of  the  recipient,  who  thereupon  becomes 


FUTURE  LIFE 

himself  an  active  agent  in  the  production  of  the 
phenomenon,  and  receives,  or  thinks  he  receives,  an 
external  impression.  Usually  he  sees  an  image,  rep- 
resenting either  the  subject  or  objects  surrounding 
the  subject;  sometimes  he  seems  to  hear  the  subject's 
voice  or  even  to  feel  the  contact  of  his  hands  or  face. 
He  undergoes,  in  fact,  a  complete  hallucination  under 
the  influence  of  the  idea  which  is  haunting  him. 

Occasionally  it  does  happen  that  the  impression 
thus  excited  at  a  distance  assumes  a  material  char- 
acter and  can  be  perceived  by  several  persons  at  the 
same  time,  or  even,  indeed,  by  animals.  But  these 
are  quite  exceptional  cases.  As  a  rule  the  phenom- 
enon appears  to  be  purely  subjective,  although  orig- 
inally brought  about  by  an  external  influence. 

These  strange  manifestations  are  thus  in  certain 
respects  assimilated  to  hallucinations  proper,  which 
latter  are  mere  illusions  created  by  a  disturbed  imagi- 
nation. Consequently  the  generality  of  scientists  have 
refused  until  lately  to  admit  their  reality.  This  refusal 
broke  down,  however,  when  facts  were  at  last  sub- 
mitted to  an  unprejudiced  examination.  It  could  not 
but  be  recognised  that  these  hallucinations  presented 
the  most  astonishing  coincidences  with  the  events 
which  they  announced.  These  coincidences  it  was 
impossible  to  attribute  to  mere  chance,  and  they  must 
therefore  be  causally  connected  with  the  events. 

Again,  an  eminent  scientist,  M.  Ch.  Richet,  suc- 
ceeded in  demonstrating  that  thought  was  transmitted 
without  any  tangible  intermediary;  his  researches 
were  carried  out  in  1884;  other  experimentalists,  fol- 
lowing his  lead,  —  Messrs.  Gilbert  and  Janet  in  1885, 
the  Misses  Wingfield  in  1886,  and  others,  —  obtained 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    333 

results  of  even  more  probative  force,  thus  showing 
that  manifestations  at  a  distance  cannot  a  priori  be 
considered  impossible.  They  are,  moreover,  attested 
to-day  by  numerous  exact  observations,  and  constitute, 
under  the  name  of  telepathy,  a  new  class  of  unex- 
plained phenomena,  of  which  the  reality  is  no  longer 
contested  in  principle,  and  which  science  no  longer 
refuses  to  investigate.  These  phenomena  are  cer- 
tainly destined  to  furnish  us  with  new  data  regarding 
the  constitution  of  the  human  organism  and  the  exist- 
ence of  the  etheric  double;  they  may  supply  us  with 
new  insight  which  will  make  a  useful  addition  to  that 
previously  obtained,  and  we  must  therefore  consecrate 
a  special  chapter  to  them. 

When  reduced  to  its  essential  terms,  spontaneous 
telepathy  may  be  described  as  follows :  An  impression 
is  received  by  a  percipient  subject,  which  impression 
is  caused  by  the  unconscious  action  of  an  emittent 
agent,  or  a  second  agent  remote  from  the  first  and 
sometimes  at  a  great  distance. 

This  action  takes  the  form  of  a  sense-impression; 
an  image  is  seen,  a  sound  is  heard,  or  a  touch  is  felt ; 
and  the  percipient  becomes  cognisant  of  the  agent,  of 
whom  he  was  not  thinking.  The  action  takes  place, 
as  a  rule,  when  the  agent  is  passing  through  some 
grave  crisis  such  as  endangers  his  life,  and  especially 
when  he  is  on  the  point  of  death. 

The  impression,  almost  always  quite  transient,  gen- 
erally leaves  no  material  trace  behind  it ;  and  we  should 
therefore,  as  we  just  remarked,  have  no  reason  for 
distinguishing  it  from  a  pure  hallucination,  were  it 
not  for  the  coincidence  of  the  two  facts,  namely,  the 


334  FUTURE  LIFE 

impression  received  by  the  percipient,  and  the  decrease 
of  the  agent.  The  same  consideration  obHges  us  to 
set  aside,  as  being  purely  subjective,  such  spontaneous 
hallucinations  as  do  not  correspond  with  some  event 
in  the  agent's  life  sufficiently  grave  to  be  comparable 
with  death;  for  we  have  otherwise  no  criterion 
whereby  to  discuss  the  coincidence. 

It  is,  however,  not  impossible  that  a  certain  number 
of  hallucinations,  or  even  of  ideas  suddenly  arising  in 
our  minds,  may  be  excited  by  some  extraneous  action, 
as  the  study  of  experimental  telepathy  tends  to  show. 
Whatever  the  case  may  be,  the  coincidence  of  facts 
constitutes  the  decisive  element  in  spontaneous  telep- 
athy. Without  it  observation  loses  all  interest,  for  it 
is  above  all  essential  that  the  reality  of  phenomena 
should  be  proved  beyond  dispute.  This  is,  indeed, 
a  task  requiring  delicate  handling;  for  if,  on  the 
one  hand,  it  is  easy  to  ascertain  the  exact  date  of  the 
death  of  the  emittent  who  was  one  of  the  factors  of 
the  phenomenon,  it  is  far  more  difficult,  on  the  other 
hand,  to  determine  precisely  what  was  the  impression 
felt  by  the  percipient,  and  to  reconstruct  it  exactly  in 
all  its  details.  The  account  given  by  the  percipient 
must  be  probed;  it  must  be  found  out  whether  his 
remembrance  is  quite  trustworthy,  whether  he  does 
not  unconsciously  embellish  or  magnify  facts;  the 
declarations  which  he  made  before  learning  of  the 
death  of  the  subject  in  a  normal  way  must  be  com- 
pared ;  in  fine,  the  materiality  of  the  facts  in  question 
must  be  assured  by  all  the  criteria  at  our  disposal. 
How  difficult  it  is  to  arrive  at  certainty  in  such  a 
matter  is  at  once  obvious,  and  even  when  one  might, 
in  certain  determinate  cases,  imagine  that  certainty 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    335 

had  been  reached,  one  must  always  ask  oneself 
whether  it  is  not  the  result  of  a  purely  fortuitous 
coincidence,  upon  which  it  is  illegitimate  to  found 
any  conclusion. 

In  order  to  dispose  of  this  objection  we  must  have 
before  us  a  number  of  analogous  observations,  capable 
of  withstanding  the  most  searching  scrutiny.  We 
may  then  show  that  the  ascertained  coincidences  can- 
not be  explained  as  a  simple  outcome  of  chance,  but 
must  of  necessity  be  causally  connected. 

This  difficult  work  of  research  was  undertaken  by 
the  Society  for  Psychical  Research,  founded  in  Lon- 
don in  1882.  It  had  the  good  fortune  to  have  at  its 
head  three  men  of  particular  eminence  very  well  fitted 
for  their  task ;  these  were  its  first  president,  Sidgwick, 
considered  one  of  the  greatest  critical  luminaries  of 
modern  England,  and  its  two  honorary  secretaries, 
Messrs.  Gurney  and  Myers.  Thanks  to  them,  the 
work  was  brought  to  a  successful  finish.  They  made 
it  their  business,  together  with  Mr.  Podmore,  to  collect 
all  the  instances  of  hallucination  possible,  and  in  so 
doing  they  neglected  no  precautions  or  measures  to 
establish  their  exactness  and  authenticity.  As  they 
set  much  store  upon  arriving  at  a  rational  conviction 
in  each  of  the  cases  recorded,  they  entered  into  direct 
communication  with  all  witnesses  who  could  shed  any 
light  upon  the  subject,  and  did  all  in  their  power  to 
make  their  personal  acquaintance,  so  as  to  estimate 
rightly  their  intelligence  and  good  faith. 

We  shall  not  here  dwell  upon  all  the  precautions 
which  were  taken  and  which  made  this  vast  inquiry, 
carried  on  during  three  years  (1883-1886),  a  model 
of  its  sort.    They  will  be  found  described  at  length  in 


336  FUTURE  LIFE 

the  Report  published  by  Messrs.  Gurney,  Myers,  and 
Podmore/  and  in  the  abstract  thereof  given  in  French 
by  M.  Marillier.2  Let  us  however  remark  that  in 
collecting  the  evidence  Mr.  Gurney  found  it  necessary 
to  write  sixty  letters  a  day  during  those  three  years, 
and  to  travel  thousands  of  miles.  Messrs.  Myers, 
Sidgwick,  and  Podmore  did  almost  as  much  on  their 
part.  It  is  only  at  the  cost  of  such  exertions  that 
researches  of  this  kind  can  obtain  any  value,  and  it 
cannot  be  toO'  much  insisted  on  that  no  trouble  is  to 
be  spared  in  rendering  the  evidence  as  perfect  as 
may  be. 

The  inquiry  resulted  in  the  collection  of  fifty- 
seven  hundred  and  five  cases,  among  which  six  hun- 
dred and  sixty-eight  hallucinations  were  recorded 
as  having  taken  place  between  1872  and  1885.  Of 
these  cases  seventy-eight  revealed  a  striking  coinci- 
dence between  the  day  and  hour  at  which  the  hallu- 
cination was  felt  by  the  percipient  and  the  death  of  the 
agent.  When  the  two  events  were  not  absolutely 
simultaneous  they  never  differed  by  more  than  twelve 
hours,  the  hallucination  taking  place  after,  or  even 
before,  the  precise  moment  of  the  decease.  In  one 
particular  case,  that  of  Mr.  Wheatcroft,^  the  com- 
parison of  the  two  dates  led  to  the  rectification  of  an 
error  in  the  death  certificate. 

In  other  cases  the  coincidence  is  less  perfect;  that 
is,  the  difference  exceeds  twelve  hours.  Sometimes 
it  is  impossible  to  identify  the  image  of  the  agent  or 
to  explain  the  apparition  by  any  legitimate  coinci- 
dence, so  that  some  of  these  observations  must  be 

1  Phantasms  of  the  Living.        ^  Les  Hallucinations  T^lepathiques. 
8  Op,  cit,  page  133. 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    337 

classified  as  purely  subjective  hallucinations.  An 
analogous  inquiry  was  instituted  as  a  result  of  the 
International  Congress  of  •  Experimental  Psychology 
held  at  Paris  in  1889.  This  revealed  thirteen  hundred 
cases  of  hallucinations,  of  which  thirty  at  least  were 
recognised  as  being  genuine  on  account  of  ascertained 
coincidences. 

The  eminent  astronomer  Camille  Flammarion,  who 
has  also  devoted  himself  to  the  study  of  these  myste- 
rious questions,  organised  an  inquiry  of  a  similar 
character  on  his  own  account;  this  was  in  1899.  He 
collected  in  France  eleven  hundred  and  twenty  in- 
stances of  hallucination,  most  of  them  resting  on 
fairly  exact  concordance  of  dates,  showing  that  the 
phenomenon  is  by  no  means  so  rare  as  might  at  first 
be  supposed.  The  discussion  of  the  figures  thus  ob- 
tained permits  of  our  inquiring  whether  the  number 
of  ascertained  coincidences  exceeds  the  number  which 
might  be  due  to  chance.  This  is  a  question  which 
must  be  answered  by  a  calculation  of  probabilities. 
It  must,  however,  be  remarked  that,  owing  to  the  very 
general  terms  in  which  the  problem  is  necessarily  pre- 
sented, this  calculation  cannot  yield  a  single  absolutely 
definite  solution,  for  it  may  be  carried  out  from  dif- 
ferent points  of  view. 

It  might  be  inquired,  for  instance,  what  would  be 
the  normal  proportion  of  genuine  hallucinations  as 
against  those  which  are  purely  subjective;  or  again, 
what  at  any  given  moment  are  the  chances  that  those 
friends  or  relations  will  die  whose  image  the  percipi- 
ent would  be  able  to  recognise  in  a  telepathic  halluci- 
nation. Each  of  these  ways  of  looking  at  the  matter 
necessarily  leads  to  a  calculation  yielding  particular 

22 


FUTURE  LIFE 

results  of  its  own.  But,  whatever  standpoint  be 
adopted,  the  ultimate  conclusion  is  in  no  wise  altered. 
For  in  each  case  the  number  of  coincidences  recorded 
greatly  exceeds  those  predicted  by  calculation  of 
probabilities. 

For  example,  as  against  subjective  hallucinations, 
the  telepathic  manifestations  recorded  are  four  hun- 
dred times  more  than  those  which  would  be  due  to 
chance ;  the  ratio  becomes  one  of  four  millions  to  one, 
when  we  take  into  account  the  probabilities  of  death, 
even  if  we  accept  the  maximum  limit  of  twelve  hours 
to  which  we  have  before  referred.  If  we  reduce  the 
limit  to  one  hour,  or  take  into  account  the  fact  that 
the  apparitions  often  occurred  at  the  very  instant  of 
death,  the  ratiO'  becomes  almost  fantastically  great. 

We  thus  see  that  the  hypothesis  of  telepathic  hal- 
lucination being  a  true  phenomenon  is  four  million 
times  more  likely  than  that  of  its  being  a  purely  for- 
tuitous coincidence.  This  conclusion  would  become 
even  more  cogent  if  we  were  further  to  take  into  con- 
sideration coincidences  of  detail  which  in  each  case 
corroborated  the  impression  produced  by  the  appari- 
tion and  facilitated  its  identification;  or  if  we  were 
to  reckon  in  cases  of  collective  hallucinations,  especially 
those  reciprocal  hallucinations  in  which  both  factors 
involved,  emittent  and  percipient,  appeared  to  each 
other  simultaneously. 

Under  such  conditions  it  must  be  admitted  that  the 
theory  of  the  operation  of  chance  presents  such  grave 
difficulties  that  it  cannot  but  be  abandoned. 

It  may  be  objected  that  it  entails  no  material  im- 
possibility; but  it  must  also  be  recognised  that  in 
such  cases  absolute  certainty  is  beyond  us,  because 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    339 

we  cannot  repeat  the  experiment  ad  infinitum,  as  the 
theory  would  demand,  and  consequently  we  must  be 
satisfied  with  approximate  certainty,  as  we  are  indeed 
in  the  acts  of  daily  life. 

We  may  add,  to  employ  a  trite  comparison,  that 
were  we  to  cast  together  at  random  all  the  letters  of 
which  the  Iliad  is  composed,  no  reasonable  person 
would  hesitate  to  predict  that  the  combination  thus 
obtained  would  not  reproduce  the  text  of  the  poem; 
yet  that  combination  is  in  itself  just  as  probable  as 
the  one  which  will,  in  fact,  be  produced,  so  true  is  it 
that  when  we  reach  such  high  numbers  probability 
and  certainty  become  confounded. 

As  we  have  before  remarked,  telepathic  halluci- 
nation is  induced  by  an  unconscious  action  emanating 
from  the  emittent,  which  impinges  upon  the  brain  of 
the  percipient  and  gives  rise  in  him  to  an  impression 
varying  according  to  particular  cases. 

This  action  appears  to  manifest  itself  in  cases  of 
violent  death,  especially  by  drowning.  It  would  seem 
that  at  that  moment  all  the  forces  of  the  psychic  being 
are  concentrated  in  the  thought  of  a  beloved  person, 
whom  the  expiring  victim  calls  to  his  aid  or  longs  to 
look  upon  in  a  last  farewell,  and  by  a  mysterious  pro- 
jection which  we  can  very  well  conceive,  the  image 
of  the  dying  man  in  his  last  agony  becomes  material- 
ised, and  can  manifest  itself  to  the  person  thought  of: 
if  he  is  qualified  to  perceive  it. 

The  feeling  of  imminent  danger,  which  is  not  neces- 
sarily succeeded  by  death,  sometimes  suffices  to  bring 
about  this  externalisation  of  psychic  force,  and  it 
has  been  possible  to  ascertain  from  those  who  have 


340  FUTURE  LIFE 

survived  such  peril  that  as  a  rule  they  have  retained 
no  precise  notion  of  the  manifestation  of  which  they 
were  the  authors.  This  manifestation  seems  to  have 
concerned  only  the  psychic  organism,  which  left  no 
record  of  it  upon  the  normal  consciousness.  It  is 
inscribed  only  in  the  mysterious  domain  of  the  sub- 
conscious, which  alone  seems  to  retain  the  complete 
remembrance  of  the  forgotten  events  of  life. 

Let  it  be  added  from  another  point  of  view  that,  if 
in  certain  cases  the  violent  impression  produced  by 
imminent  peril  of  death  is  really  sufficient  to  bring 
about  a  fluidic  action  at  a  distance,  it  is  nevertheless 
not  able  so  to  do  unless  each  of  the  factors  concerned, 
emittent  and  percipient,  presents  the  conditions  of  tem- 
perament requisite  for  the  production  and  reception 
of  the  phenomenon;  and  this,  moreover,  is  the  sole 
consideration  which  can  explain  the  great  rarity  of 
these  manifestations,  which  are  after  all  exceptional. 

Experience,  moreover,  teaches  us  that  hallucinations 
are  rarely  experienced  more  than  once  in  a  lifetime, 
which  goes  to  show  that  they  require  a  peculiar  con- 
currence of  circumstances.  As  far  as  regards  the 
percipient,  we  can  instance  various  examples  in  which 
the  apparition  of  a  dying  person  has  not  been  per- 
ceived by  the  relation  whom  it  was  evidently  desired 
to  afifect,  but  by  a  stranger  who  happened  to  be  in  that 
relation's  immediate  neighbourhood  and  was  unac- 
quainted with  the  deceased,  but  doubtless  possessed 
the  faculty  of  being  influenced  by  invisible  manifesta- 
tions. We  would  refer  in  particular  to  the  case  of 
Mrs.  Clerk,  which  is  recorded  as  Number  87  in  Maril- 
lier's  work  referred  to  above. 
I    She  was   seated,   she  said,   during  the  month  of 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    341 

August,  1864,  upon  the  veranda  of  her  house  in 
Barbadoes,  and  noticed  nothing  abnormal  in  her  sur- 
roundings, when  suddenly,  a  negress,  who  was  looking 
after  her  little  boy,  came  up  to  her  and  expressed  sur- 
prise at  seeing  her  refuse  to  answer  the  stranger  who 
stood  by  her  side.  From  her  description  of  this  per- 
son, she  learned  that  it  was  her  brother  who  was 
meant,  but  who  was  unknown  to  the  negress.  Shortly 
afterwards  she  heard  that  her  brother  died  upon  that 
date  a  long  way  off,  at  Tobago. 

As  a  rule,  the  peculiar  temperament  of  the  percipi- 
ent contributes  to  decide  the  kind  of  hallucination. 
The  action  emanating  from  the  emittent  can  only  be 
regarded  as  generally  excitatory  and  therefore  capable 
of  provoking  various  manifestations  should  it  at  the 
same  time  act  upon  different  sensitive  persons.  One 
may  hear  a  voice,  another  may  see  the  spectre  of  the 
dying  man  appearing  in  his  usual  form  and  dressed 
in  his  customary  manner,  or  else,  on  the  contrary, 
retaining  the  attitude  in  which  he  had  been  over- 
taken by  the  crisis  which  robbed  him  of  life.  This 
would  seem  to  indicate  that  we  have  to  do  with  a 
purely  subjective  phenomenon,  possessing  no  material 
reality. 

At  the  same  time,  be  it  remarked  that  this  rule  is 
not  without  exceptions ;  for  the  inquiry  instituted  by 
the  Society  for  Psychical  Research  disclosed  certain 
cases  in  which  an  auditory  hallucination  has  been 
perceived  by  animals,  and  such  an  example  will  be 
found  in  Mr.  Garling's  statement.^  Generally  speak- 
ing, visual  hallucinations  are  by  far  the  most  com- 
mon, which  fact  is  to  a  certain  degree  explained  by 

1  Marillier,  No.  121,  page  322. 


342  FUTURE  LIFE 

their  being  more  easy  of  identification.  Next  in  order 
of  frequency  come  auditory  hallucinations,  which  are 
much  less  rare  than  tactile  hallucinations,  the  latter 
being  excessively  uncommon  and  rarely  appearing  by 
themselves. 

On  the  whole  it  may  be  said  that  hallucinations 
seem  to  manifest  themselves  more  readily  when  the 
mind  is  freed  from  other  preoccupations,  as  for  in- 
stance, when  the  percipient  is  in  bed  and  about  to 
fall  asleep.  Relatively  numerous  manifestations  are 
known  which  have  occurred  either  in  a  state  of 
complete  wakefulness  or  in  the  course  of  dreams. 

The  phenomena  which  we  have  so  far  described 
have  been  essentially  spontaneous;  they  have  been 
excited  as  a  rule  by  an  unconscious  agent,  and 
recognised  by  a  percipient  who  was  not  expecting 
them.  We  have  consequently  encountered  very  great 
difficulty  in  establishing  their  authenticity  from  a 
scientific  point  of  view;  it  is  therefore  a  matter  of 
great  interest  to  discover  whether  they  may  not  be 
reproduced  by  experimental  means.  Many  talented 
observers  whose  names  we  have  before  mentioned, 
such  as  Messrs.  Richet,  Gilbert,  and  Janet,  have 
devoted  themselves  to  this  study  and  have  obtained 
results  clearly  demonstrating  the  possibility  of  arti- 
ficially producing  parallel  phenomena;  of  obtaining, 
for  instance,  the  transmission  of  thought  to  a  distance 
by  operating  with  subjects  endowed  with  suitable 
qualities. 

With  this  object  they  performed  numerous  experi- 
ments, which  they  multiplied  intentionally,  so  as  to  do 
away,  as  far  as  possible,  with  fortuitous  coincidences. 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    343 

They  operated  under  conditions  permitting  of  a 
vigorous  application  of  the  calculation  of  probabili- 
ties. In  the  divination  of  numbers  thought  of,  for 
instance,  they  discovered  that  the  total  successes 
obtained  far  exceeded  those  predicted  by  the  calcu- 
lation of  chance. 

Thus,  in  a  series  of  four  hundred  experiments  car- 
ried out  in  June,  1876,  Mr.  and  the  Misses  Wingfield 
obtained  twenty-seven  complete  successes,  whereas  the 
number  foreseen  was  only  two.  In  twenty-one  cases 
the  two  figures  composing  the  number  were  given 
rightly,  but  their  order  was  reversed.  In  one  hun- 
dred and  sixty-two  other  cases  one  of  the  two  figures 
only  was  correct,  but  occupied  its  right  position. 

Certain  English  and  American  experimentalists 
have  succeeded  in  transmitting  images  with  the 
most  extraordinary  degree  of  precision,  as  is  re- 
counted by  M.  Marillier.  M.  Camille  Flammarion 
also  cites  a  large  number  of  analogous  instances  col- 
lected by  him,  so  that  it  would  seem  impossible  to 
negative  all  this  evidence,  at  least  without  further 
examination. 

Thus  experimental  telepathy  goes  to  confirm  the 
reality  of  spontaneous  telepathy,  but  it  differs  there- 
from in  certain  respects,  in  that  it  induces  halluci- 
nations of  a  different  character.  It  proceeds  by 
awakening  ideas  in  the  mind  of  the  percipient  with- 
out causing  any  visual  or  auditory  impression,  as  is 
the  case  in  spontaneous  telepathy.  It  can,  however, 
transmit  certain  sensations,  as  pain  and  pleasure,  or 
the  tendency  to  perform  certain  actions,  of  which  we 
find  examples  in  experiments  in  magnetism.  The 
subject  does  not  require  to  be  brought  into  a  state 


344  FUTURE  LIFE 

of  hypnosis,  but  at  the  same  time  he  must  not  be 
in  a  condition  of  complete  wakefulness.  He  should, 
on  the  contrary,  endeavour  to  withdraw  his  thoughts 
from  external  matters  and  to  assume  a  state  of  re- 
ceptivity in  which  he  may  be  able  to  discern  the 
action  impinging  upon  his  brain. 

The  observations  which  we  have  just  summarised 
show  that  we  cannot  deny  the  possibility  of  one 
organism  acting  upon  another  at  a  distance,  and  we 
may  add  that  from  this  standpoint  telepathy  has  won 
I  a  firm  foothold  in  science.  At  the  same  time  we 
must  confess  that  as  yet  we  possess  no  satisfactory 
explanation  of  these  mysterious  phenomena.  In  any 
attempt  to  determine  the  fundamental  principle,  at 
least,  upon  which  an  explanation  will  in  all  likeli- 
hood have  to  be  based,  we  again  come  back  to  the  gen- 
eral notion  of  those  incessant  vibrations  in  the  invisible 
ether  to  which  we  have  already  reduced  the  material 
universe,  and  which  likewise  appear  to  us  to  be  the 
only  possible  intermediary  of  psychic  force. 

We  were  previously  able  to  explain  manifestations 
produced  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  the 
subject,  merely  as  an  externalisation  of  the  fluidic 
double.  But  when  we  come  to  give  account  of 
manifestations,  widely  differing  in  kind  and  effected 
over  large  distances,  —  cases  in  which  images  and 
thoughts  are  transmitted,  —  it  becomes  difficult  to 
admit  these  as  simply  phenomena  of  externalisation. 
It  would,  on  the  contrary,  seem  much  more  probable 
that  the  emittent  agent  unconsciously  brings  about 
a  peculiar  species  of  radiation,  which  is  instantly 
transmitted  through  the  medium  of  the  ambient  ether 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    345 

or  of  a  fluid  perhaps  more  subtile  still.  The  vibration 
thus  produced  may  either  spread  through  space  in 
ever  increasing  spheres,  until  it  at  last  reaches  the 
person  for  whom  it  is  intended  and  who  can  receive 
and  interpret  it,  or  else  it  may  proceed  toward  him 
unhesitatingly,  as  would  a  conscious  messenger,  and 
thus  preserve  all  its  energy  in  order  to  manifest  itself 
to  him.  Neither  of  these  alternatives  can  we  posi- 
tively affirm,  for  we  see  in  material  nature  no 
force  capable  of  thus  covering  distances  and  passing 
through  obstacles,  and  even  of  suspending  its  action 
for  a  certain  time,  without  undergoing  any  marked 
diminution  of  power.  We  are,  however,  acquainted 
with  analogies  which  permit  of  our  explaining  to 
a  certain  extent  how  these  hypothetical  vibrations 
may  possibly  act.  We  know,  for  instance,  that  an 
acoustic  vibration  of  a  given  pitch  sets  in  motion 
a  tuning-fork  or  the  sonorous  string  which  yields  a 
note  synchronous  with  its  own. 

In  like  manner,  a  magnetic  needle  can  act  at  a 
distance  upon  another  such  needle  and  communicate 
to  it  oscillations  synchronous  with  its  own,  just  as 
the  vibrating  disc  of  a  telephone  transmits  to  a  re- 
ceiving disc  by  means  of  an  electric  current  all  the 
undulatory  movements  which  it  experiences,  however 
complex  they  may  be.  We  are  to-day  in  posses- 
sion of  an  even  more  striking  example  in  the  ap- 
plication of  Hertzian  waves  to  wireless  telegraphy. 
We  know  that  they  are  transmitted  without  any  per- 
ceptible intermediary,  and  that  they  can  be  taken  up 
by  the  receiving  station,  so  long  as  it  is  capable  of 
producing  synchronous  vibrations;  otherwise  they 
would  pass  as  unperceived  as  if  they  did  not  exist 


346  FUTURE  LIFE 

at  all.  As  M.  Camille  Flammarion  has  so  well  put 
it,  the  chord  of  a  piano  which  moves  under  the  in- 
fluence of  a  vibration  imperceptible  to  the  neighbour- 
ing chords  would  certainly  be  regarded  by  them  as 
hallucinated,  were  they  able  to  think.  The  same 
would  be  the  case  with  the  receiving  station  for 
Hertzian  waves,  were  it  placed  among  other  receiv- 
ing stations  whose  synchronism  was  different.  Is  it 
not  legitimate  to  suppose  that  the  same  holds  good 
of  the  transmission  of  psychic  waves?  Are  we  not 
going  beyond  our  rights  in  condemning  the  percipi- 
ent whose  brain  has  gathered  up  vibrations  which 
we  ourselves  do  not  feel? 

Let  us  suppose  that  in  presence  of  these  vibrations 
the  human  brain  acts  like  a  kind  of  sponge  formed 
by  the  union  of  countless  bundles  of  fibres  of  vary- 
ing lengths,  each  of  which  is  capable  of  vibrating 
in  response  to  certain  special  conditions. 

The  external  vibration  affects  that  bundle  which 
best  responds  to  it,  and  causes  the  displacement  of 
a  fibre,  the  movement  of  which  is  synchronous  with 
its  own.  This  fibre,  by  its  vibration,  gives  rise  in 
the  brain  to  a  particular  sensation  which  depends 
upon  the  nature  of  the  bundle  affected  and  upon  the 
echo  which  it  arouses  in  the  neighbouring  fibres,  but 
is  not  of  necessity  identical  with  the  motive-sensation. 
We  can  thus  explain  the  formation  of  those  mul- 
tiple impressions  which  appear  concomitantly  with  the 
telepathic  message,  and  whose  insignificance  seems 
sometimes  to  contrast  so  strangely  with  the  serious 
preoccupations  that  should  be  called  forth  by  a 
communication  from  a  dying  person.  But  telepathy 
is  an   essentially   irregular  phenomenon,   and   it   is 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    347 

impossible  to  foretell  the  forms  which  it  may  assume, 
any  more  than  we  can  predict  the  action  of  light- 
ning, whose  fantastic  freaks  are,  as  we  before  re- 
marked, far  more  bewildering  than  those  of  the 
psychic  force. 

From  another  standpoint  let  us  note  that  the  voli- 
tion of  the  subject  has  as  a  rule  no  direct  share  in 
the  phenomenon;  it  is  merely  an  image  emanating 
from  him  which  causes  an  impression  upon  the 
brain  of  the  percipient. 

In    spontaneous    telepathy,    this    motive-image    is 
formed  unconsciously,  whereas  in  experimental  telep- 
athy  it   is  willed  by  the  emittent.      But   in   either 
case  we  remark  this  necessary  intermediary,  and  at 
the  same  time  we  see  how  the  transmission  may 
take  place,  if  we  admit  that  the  conceptions  of  the 
mind   are   outwardly   expressed   by   ether-vibrations 
^^  analogous  to  those  of  light  and  electricity. 
I        The  human  brain  thus  becomes  a  kind  of  double 
'     station,  serving  both  to  emit  and  to  receive,  as  in 
I     wireless  telegraphy;   the  analogy  is  even  more  com- 
\     plete,  since  it  appears  to  be  proved  that  the  human 
brain,   as  well  as  that   of  certain   animals,   can  be 
;    influenced  by  Hertzian  waves,  both  during  life  and 

after  death. 

>       Upon  this  matter  certain  papers  laid  before  the 

Academy  of  Sciences  by  Dr.  Tomasini  will  be  read 

j  with  interest,  as  will  be  the  account  of  some  curious 

\^  experiments  performed  by  Dr.  Guarini,  who  claims 

/to  have  succeeded,  by  insulating  himself  from  the 

J  earth,  in  perceiving  Hertzian  waves,  just  as  would 

la  receiving  station. 

-    If,  indeed,  thought  gives  rise  to  an  ether-vibration, 


w^ 


348  FUTURE  LIFE 

we    see    how    an    idea    can    acquire    an    objective 
existence,    as    was    supposed    by    Plato    and    other 
great  philosophers  of  antiquity  whom  we  mentioned 
in  Part  I  of  this  work.    We  may  add  that  divers  ex- 
perimentalists, like  Commandant  Tegard,  Dr.  Rozier, 
and  others,  profess  to  be  able  to  provide  material 
photographic   proof    of   this    objective   existence   of 
&^f  a^  ideas.  (^They  assert  that  they  have  obtained  upon 
i    /  J^  sensitive  plate  a  direct  image  of  objects  thought 
y     h  about.")  The  authenticity  of  this  phenomenon  is  not, 
mm.     /j^  however,  quite  secure.    To  restrict  ourselves  to  argu- 
fnents    derived    from    telepathy,    thoughts    certainly 
appear  to  be  related  with  vibrations  of  the  invisible 
ether,  and  therefore,  perhaps,  to  be  capable  of  eternal 
existence,  in  the  same  manner  as  are  the  phenomena 

Lof  the  material  world,  whereof  this  mysterious  fluid 
receives  the  image. 

We  can  thus  conceive  the  universality  of  the  law 
of  indestructibility,  which  preserves  ideas  themselves 
as  well  as  facts,  in  the  very  words  of  Scripture, 
which  teaches  us  that  God  can  see  to  the  bottom  of 
our  hearts  and  will  judge  us  even  according  to  our 
most  hidden  thoughts. 

Unlike  luminous  and  electric  vibrations,  the  psychic 
image  appears  to  a  certain  extent  independent  of 
space  and  time.  Sometimes  the  apparition  of  one 
dying  far  away  will  make  itself  felt  at  the  very 
moment  of  his  passing;  at  other  times  it  would 
seem  to  await  the  favourable  moment  for  some 
time,  as  if  it  could  do  so  without  being  destroyed. 

We  know,  moreover,  that  certain  sensitive  sub- 
jects have  been  able  to  perceive  distant  and  especially 
past   events    with   the   same   life-like   intensity   and 


MANIFESTATIONS  AT  GREAT  DISTANCES    349 

wealth  of  detail  as  if  they  were  witnessing  a  real 
scene;  in  certain  highly  exceptional  cases  they  are 
said  sometimes  to  have  caught  glimpses  of  the 
future.  Various  instances  will  be  found  in  M. 
Camille  Flammarion's  work,  in  the  chapter  devoted 
to  premonitory  dreams  and  the  divination  of  the 
future.  Here  again  the  observations  collected  are 
many  and  precise,  and  it  is  difficult  to  reject  them 
absolutely.  It  is  clear  what  high  value  they  give 
to  the  theories  which  we  have  expounded  above,  for 
they  would  show  that  the  law  of  indestructibility 
embraces  both  the  future  and  the  past,  and  assigns 
at  the  same  time  the  general  sense  of  the  history  of 
the  universe. 


CHAPTER    XII 

AN  EXAMINATION  OF  THE  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES 

Impossibility  of  finding  a  Single  Solution  applicable  to  every  Medium- 
istic  Phenomenon.  — The  Theory  that  the  Medium's  Personality  is 
doubled.  —  Dr.  Grasset's  Exposition  of  this  Theory.  —  The  Particu- 
lar Part  of  the  Brain  occupied  by  the  Conscious  Ego. —  Other  Brain 
Centres.  —  The  Double  Personality  of  the  Medium  conceived  as  a 
Result  of  Independent  Action  of  the  Brain  Centres  and  a  Splitting 
of  the  Etheric  Body.  —  The  Ego's  Resistance  to  Suggestion  an  Ar- 
gument in  Favour  of  a  Voluntary  Element  in  the  Soul.  — Annihilation 
of  the  Will  under  Hypnosis.  —  Characteristics  of  Double  Personality. 

—  Dr.  Grasset's  Theory  as  applied  to  Telepathy.  —  Consciousness 
relatively  independent  of  the  Ego.  —  The  Medium's  "  Guiding- 
Spirit  "  his  own  Personality.  —  Thought-reading.  —  Hypotheses 
founded  on  the  Idea  of  the  Interposition  of  Discarnate  Souls. — 
Difficulty  of  proving  the  Authenticity  of  Spiritistic  Communications. 

—  Tests  applied  by  Members  of  the  Society  for  Psychical  Research.— 
Insignificance  of  Revelations  supposed  to  be  made  by  Spirits. 

THE  mysterious  phenomena  of  which  we  have 
just  spoken  would  necessarily  seem  to  re- 
quire the  interposition  of  a  semi-material 
fluidic  element  capable  of  exerting  physical  action 
outside  the  human  body,  and  when  the  authenticity 
of  these  facts  has  been  firmly  secured,  they  will 
probably  lend  decisive  support  to  the  conception  of 
an  etheric  double.  Nevertheless  the  mystery  will  not 
have  vanished,  for  there  will  still  remain  to  be  ex- 
plained the  intellectual  manifestations  by  which  these 
phenomena  are  accompanied  and  which  contribute 
much  toward  giving  them  a  marvellous  character. 

We  must   inquire  whether   the   intelligent'  action 
animating  the  organs  of  the  entranced  medium  really 


EXAMINATION  OF  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES    351 

emanates  from  an  external  and  invisible  being,  or 
whether,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  the  unconscious  crea- 
tion of  the  psychical  force  operating  in  the  intellec- 
tual domain,  as  it  does  in  the  physical  world.  This 
is  a  problem  which  has  long  been  debated  and  is 
still  continually  discussed,  but  without  any  definite 
solution  being  arrived  at.  We  do  not  hope  to  solve 
it  here;  but,  upon  the  strength  of  the  results  so  far 
attained,  we  can  say  that  it  is  incapable  of  receiving 
a  single  solution  applicable  to  all  cases.  What  is 
required  is  a  different  explanation  according  to  the 
character  of  the  phenomena  observed.  We  think  it 
best  to  restrict  ourselves  at  present  to  a  description 
of  the  principal  theories  proposed  with  this  intention, 
and  we  shall  apply  them  only  to  such  categories  of 
particular  facts  as  they  seem  best  fitted  to  explain. 

In  the  case  of  a  first  series  of  data,  which  indeed 
appears  to  be  the  most  important  of  all,  theory  as- 
serts that  the  personality  of  the  medium  is  doubled, 
or  perhaps,  to  speak  more  precisely,  disintegrated, 
in  the  sense  that  the  conscious  ego  loses  its  normal 
control  over  a  portion  of  the  psychical  faculties, 
which  then  act  without  its  knowledge  and  evoke  the 
unconscious  memories  latent  in  all  of  us. 

But  for  the  second  series  of  data  this  explanation 
•does  not  suffice;  for  we  are  here  confronted  with 
ideas  of  which  the  medium  is  entirely  ignorant,  but 
which  are  known  to  one  at  least  of  those  present. 
We  are  led  to  suppose  that  the  medium  was  able  to 
derive  them  from  the  brain  of  those  present  by  some 
mechanism  which  eludes  us,  but  which  we  can  ob- 
serve in  operation  in  telepathic  phenomena.  It  is, 
therefore,    only    the    unconscious    transmission    of 


352  FUTURE  LIFE 

thought,  combined  with  the  hypothesis  of  the  psy- 
chical disintegration  of  the  medium,  which  is  really 
adequate  to  give  a  natural  explanation  of  the  great 
majority  of  the  facts. 

It  has,  moreover,  been  urged  that  this  explanation 
should  cover  all  the  facts  without  exception,  so  that 
we  should  never  be  under  a  necessity  to  entertain 
any  hypothesis  involving  superhuman  interposition. 
But  it  must  be  admitted  that,  despite  all  the  efforts 
which  have  been  made  to  generalise  the  theory,  there 
still  remain  certain  refractory  cases  for  which  it  is 
inadequate.  Out  of  pure  necessity  we  are  forced 
back  upon  the  idea  of  an  invisible  being  which  mani- 
fests itself  to  us  physically  through  the  agency  of 
the  medium.  We  thus  revert  to  the  hypothesis  of 
the  interposition  of  external  intelligences,  which  are 
either  the  discarnate  souls  of  the  dead,  or  perhaps, 
as  we  shall  see  further  on,  other  spiritual  beings 
whose  existence  we  are  bound  to  suppose. 

In  the  present  chapter  it  will  be  our  endeavour  to 
examine  somewhat  minutely  each  of  these  hypotheses. 
We  shall  summarise,  as  far  as  may  be,  the  arguments 
which  each  can  put  forward  and  the  objections  which 
each  incurs. 

The  hypnotised  subject,  who  loses  personal  con- 
sciousness and  knows  no  other  will  than  that  of  his 
magnetiser,  certainly  undergoes  a  disintegration  of 
his  personality,  with  the  result  that  his  conscious  ego 
no  longer  has  control  over  his  acts  and  movements ; 
and  this  explanation  equally  applies  to  the  entranced 
medium,  who  likewise,  performs  deliberate  acts  of 
which  he  has  no  consciousness.     In  either  case  the 


EXAMINATION  OF  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES    353 

personality  of  the  subject  loses  the  absolute  unity 
with  which  we  supposed  it  to  be  endowed;  it  ap- 
pears to  us,  on  the  contrary,  as  a  complex  whole, 
admirably  coordinate  in  the  normal  state,  but  the 
elements  of  which  can  none  the  less  in  certain  ex- 
ceptional cases  recover  a  relative  independence. 

The  theory  of  psychical  disintegration  is  that  at 
present  most  generally  admitted,  and  Dr.  Grasset 
has  expounded  it  in  a  most  valuable  work  entitled 
"Spiritism  in  the  Light  of  Science"  ("Le  Spirit- 
isme  Devant  la  Science");  he  has  shown  how  it 
permits  of  our  conceiving,  from  a  physiological 
point  of  view  and  in  principle  at  least,  the  produc- 
tion of  deliberate  acts  escaping  the  observation  of 
consciousness.  We  must  distinguish,  he  says,  be- 
tween automatic  acts  proper,  which  are  the  involun- 
tary response  of  the  organism  to  an  external  stimulus, 
and  other  more  complex  acts,  which  would  seem  to 
be  equally  automatic  in  the  sense  that  they  are  per- 
formed without  consciousness,  but  which,  neverthe- 
less require  real  personal  deliberation,  implying  the 
interposition  of  a  psychical  force  unknown  in  the 
first  instance. 

The  cerebral  action  which  stimulates  automatic 
actions  proper  is  that  of  the  simple  reflexes  which 
set  themselves  in  movement  spontaneously  without 
there  being  need  for  the  consciousness  to  intervene. 
Deliberate  acts,  on  the  contrary,  can  be  determined 
only  by  a  more  complex  action  emanating  from  the 
higher  centres  immediately  bordering  upon  the  con- 
sciousness. We  may  suppose  the  higher  conscious  ego 
to  occupy  a  distinct  region  in  the  brain,  situate  in  the 
midst  of  a  polygon,  the  vertices  of  which  are  formed 

23 


354  FUTURE  LIFE 

by  the  higher  nerve-centres,  each  corresponding  to 
one  of  the  modes  of  action  whereof  the  con- 
sciousness is  capable.  Thus  we  find  on  the  one 
hand  the  sensory  receptive  nerves,  such  as  those  of 
hearing,  seeing,  general  sensitivity,  and  on  the  other 
hand  motor  centres  of  transmittance,  such  as  those 
of  speech  and  writing. 

These  various  centres  are  to  be  found  in  the  grey 
matter  of  the  cerebral  convolutions,  and  they  are 
connected  with  the  periphery  by  special  fibres,  cen- 
tripetal (afferent)  or  centrifugal  (efferent),  the  for- 
mer transmitting  impressions  from  the  outside,  and 
the  latter  conveying  to  the  motor  nerves  impulses 
derived  from  the  former. 

They  are  likewise  connected  with  the  higher  centre, 
or  conscious  ego,  which  almost  always  acts  as  a 
necessary  intermediary  between  one  of  the  polygonal 
centres  and  another ;  but  these  centres  are  also  united 
by  intercentral  fibres,  thanks  to  which  they  can  enter 
into  direct  communication  with  each  other  without 
recourse  to  the  superior  centre. 

In  such  a  case  the  impression  produced  does  not 
pass  the  limits  of  the  polygon,  and  no  intervention 
upon  the  part  of  the  consciousness  is  required.  We 
are  here  confronted  with  an  unperceived  sensation; 
we  are  entering  upon  the  domain  of  subconscious- 
ness, so  admirably  handled  by  Myers,  which  is  to 
be  found  in  each  of  us  coexisting  with  normal 
consciousness. 

The  subconsciousness  retains  the  remembrance  of 
all  facts  forgotten  by  the  conscious  memory,  and  it 
likewise  possesses  certain  intellectual  faculties  which 
would    at    first    sight    appear    to    be    the    exclusive 


EXAMINATION  OF  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES    355 

privilege  of  consciousness ;  it  can,  however,  intervene 
only  when  the  consciousness  is  over-absorbed  and 
loses  its  control,  as  is  the  case,  for  instance,  during 
distraction  or  sleep. 

The  polygon  then  acts  independently  without 
awakening  consciousness,  but  in  the  normal  state 
its  action  always  remains  exceedingly  limited,  for 
consciousness  immediately  reappears  under  the  ac- 
tion of  anything  like  an  energetic  impression.  This 
is  not  the  case,  however,  in  hypnosis  or  mediumship, 
when  the  consciousness  appears  entirely  absent,  so 
that  upon  awakening  it  retains  no  memory  of  the 
past. 

Dr.  -  Grasset's  theory,  as  may  be  seen,  establishes 
an  essential  distinction  between  purely  automatic 
actions  and  those  which  suppose  a  psychical  inter- 
ference apart  from  consciousness.  His  conclusion 
is  that  these  two  modes  of  action  are  governed  by 
distinct  cerebral  centres.  This  conclusion  is,  how- 
ever, contested  by  certain  physiologists,  who  opine 
that  between  automatic  life  and  the  higher  psychism 
there  is  no  sufficiently  clear  distinction  to  allow  of 
their  being  connected  with  separate  organs. 

We  must,  however,  concur  with  Dr.  Grasset  in 
this:  The  distinction  is  one  of  facts,  as  is  shown  in 
particular  by  the  example  of  mediums.  Dr.  Grasset 
adds,  moreover,  that  certain  aphasics  possess  auto- 
matic language,  although  unable  to  articulate  con- 
scious language. 

His  theory  thus  explains  disintegration  of  the 
personality  by  considering  certain  cerebral  centres 
to  operate  independently.  It  therefore  does  not  re- 
quire the  interference  of  any  fluidic  element,  but  it 


356  FUTURE  LIFE 

may  be  seen  how  readily  the  latter  adapts  itself 
thereto.  All  that  is  required  is  to  imagine  that  the 
supposed  centres  are  actuated  by  corresponding  por- 
tions of  the  fluidic  double  detached  from  the  central 
nucleus ;  and  this  explanation  will  have  more  interest 
when  it  is  recognised,  as  certain  physiologists  allow, 
that  it  is  practically  impossible  to  distinguish  between 
the  cerebral  centres  which  theory  supposes  to  inter- 
fere separately.  The  hypothesis  of  a  fluidic  double 
has  already  permitted  of  our  explaining  phenomena 
of  a  sensitive  or  mechanical  order,  such  as  the  ex- 
ternalisation  of  sensitivity  and  motivity;  it  would 
therefore  seem  the  obvious  thing  for  us  to  have 
recourse  to  the  same  hypothesis  in  explaining  phe- 
nomena of  an  intellectual  order. 

We  shall  look  upon  disintegration  as  being  the 
result  of  a  splitting  of  the  etheric  body,  as  a  conse- 
quence of  which  certain  cerebral  centres  are  insulated 
from  the  normal  consciousness.  It  may  happen, 
sometimes,  that  the  fragment  thus  detached  includes 
the  ego  of  the  subject,  which  is  then  united  with  it 
in  a  more  or  less  formal  manner,  and  in  that  case 
the  phenomena  immediately  assume  a  different  aspect 
according  to  the  degree  in  which  this  precarious 
union  is  effected. 

If  we  start  with  simple  hypnosis,  which  does  not 
appear  to  affect  the  ego  of  the  subject,  we  can  pass 
through  all  the  series  of  mediumistic  manifestations 
in  which  the  more  or  less  marked  interference  of 
the  ego  always  preserves  an  exceptional  and  tran- 
sient character,  and  finally  we  shall  arrive  at  a  com- 
plete and  permanent  doubling  of  the  personality. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  in  all  phenomena  of 


EXAMINATION  OF  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES    357 

disintegration  of  the  fluidic  envelope,  the  resistance 
to  suggestion  becomes  more  marked  in  proportion 
as  the  intervention  of  the  ego  is  better  accentuated; 
and  this  fact,  attesting  as  it  does  the  personal  activity 
of  consciousness,  furnishes  us  with  an  argument  of 
great  value  in  favour  of  the  existence  in  the  human 
soul  of  a  voluntary  and  independent  element. 

In  the  extreme  case  when  the  separation  has  taken 
place  without  any  intervention  of  the  ego  at  all,  the 
subject,  no  longer  guided  by  himself,  loses  all  per- 
sonal initiative  and  becomes  characterised  by  that 
extreme  suggestibility  which  is  so  distinctive  a  feat- 
ure of  hypnosis.  The  etheric  fragment  governing  his 
actions  appears  devoid  of  all  volitional  power,  and 
obeys  without  resistance  all  the  impulses  which  suc- 
cessively come  to  sway  it.  In  mediumistic  experi- 
ments it  immediately  brings  about  the  manifestation 
required,  when  it  is  a  matter,  for  instance,  of  per- 
forming a  predetermined  number  of  raps;  and  in 
cases  of  simple  suggestion  it  causes  the  subject  to 
strike  attitudes,  make  gestures,  and  assume  expres- 
sions, representing  with  a  talent  to  which  even  expert 
actors  cannot  attain,  the  successive  thoughts  to  which 
it  is  inspired. 

If  we  now  take  the  opposite  case,  in  which  the 
will  appears  to  retain  its  full  power  and  is  not  an- 
nihilated as  in  hypnosis,  we  can  suppose  the  ego  of 
the  subject  to  animate  in  him  either  of  the  two 
independent  fragments  of  the  mental  body,  and  thus 
always  to  form  a  combination  possessed  of  a  certain 
stability.  This  is  the  phenomenon  of  double  person- 
ality, of  which  we  have  many  examples  quite  apart 
from  mediumistic  manifestations. 


358  FUTURE  LIFE 

The  physical  body  of  the  subject  is  then  inhabited, 
as  it  were,  by  two  different  beings,  each  of  which 
occupies  it  alternately,  preserves  throughout  the 
period  of  its  temporary  manifestations  the  appear- 
ance of  normal  existence,  and  displays  no  particular 
aptitude  for  suggestion,  which  is  the  reverse  of  what 
is  the  case  with  hypnotic  subjects. 

Subjects  affected  by  double  personality  are  dis- 
tinguishable from  normal  persons  by  one  quite  deci- 
sive characteristic :  they  never  possess  the  continuous 
remembrance  of  their  past  existence;  for  they  are 
formed,  as  it  were,  by  the  union  of  several  distinct 
personalities,  each  of  which  is  aware  only  of  acts 
performed  during  its  own  particular  manifestations, 
and  is  ignorant  of  all  others.  In  its  successive  re- 
crudescences each  of  these  distinct  personalities  will 
be  found  self-identical,  and  will  possess  the  complete 
and  exact  remembrance  of  all  its  previous  acts.  We 
are  consequently  led  to  believe  that  the  splitting  of  the 
etheric  body  which  induced  this  duplication  of  person- 
ality takes  place  in  a  fixed  and  constant  manner ;  the 
line  of  rupture  must  always  be  the  same  and  must 
invariably  isolate  the  same  elements.  This  is  indeed  a 
characteristic  property  of  all  subjects  who  display 
these  phenomena  in  any  marked  degree. 

The  result  of  these  changes  in  personality  is  often 
to  bring  to  light  subconscious  memories,  especially  in 
mediumistic  manifestations;  and  so  a  whole  line  of 
interesting  investigation  might  be  opened  up,  permit- 
ting us  perhaps  even  to  learn  something  of  prenatal 
history,  were  it  proved  that  subconsciousness  involved 
knowledge  which  the  subject  could  not  possibly  have 
acquired  during  his  present  life. 


EXAMINATION  OF  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES   359 

Up  to  the  present  this  has  not  been  demonstrated, 
albeit  certain  mediums  certainly  have  possessed  sub- 
conscious knowledge  difficult  to  explain  otherwise.  It 
must  not,  however,  be  forgotten  that  these  exceptional 
faculties  occasionally  displayed  by  the  medium  cannot 
be  explained  by  a  mere  disintegration  of  the  person- 
ality, and  this  is  perhaps  the  most  serious  objection 
that  can  be  brought  against  Dr.  Grasset's  remarkable 
theory;  for  it  cannot  show  how  the  cerebral  centres, 
when  independent  of  the  consciousness,  can  acquire 
the  faculty  of  perceiving  and  acting  at  a  distance, 
which  is  refused  to  it  in  the  normal  condition.  Thus 
we  are  again  led  back  to  the  conception  of  a  fluidic 
intermediary  capable  of  partly  detaching  itself  from 
the  physical  body  and  of  thus  receiving  impressions 
upon  a  plane  more  subtile  than  that  of  matter. 

As  Dr.  Maxwell  remarks  in  handling  Myers's  the- 
ory of  subconsciousness,  it  is  quite  true  that  in  the 
mediumistic  state  there  is  a  decided  enfeeblement  of 
the  feeling  of  personal,  conscious,  and  voluntary  ac- 
tivity. But  this  may  perhaps  be  ascribed  to  the  dis- 
appearance of  a  mode  of  consciousness,  and  may  thus 
be  viewed  as  constituting  rather  an  integration  than 
a  disintegration;  for  it  reveals  to  us  a  general  con- 
sciousness of  which  personal  consciousness  is  perhaps 
only  a  reduced  element,  which  has  become  more  defi- 
nite in  becoming  concrete. 

As  soon  as  the  ego  of  the  subject  unites  with  the 
etheric  group  and  determines  the  personality  which 
thereupon  manifests  itself,  it  assumes  a  consciousness 
which  is  exclusively  determined  by  the  memories  pre- 
served by  this  new  grouping,  and  it  entirely  forgets 
those  of  the  aggregate  which  it  has  just  left.     And 


860  FUTURE  LIFE 

so  we  arrive  at  a  conception  of  the  phenomena  of 
consciousness  as  being  possessed  of  a  relative  in- 
dependence in  relation  to  the  ego,  which  neverthe- 
less identifies  them  with  itself,  because  at  each  instant 
they  are  represented  to  it  by  the  etheric  elements 
which  it  is  capable  of  perceiving. 

In  manifestations  intermediate  between  the  two 
extreme  cases  which  we  have  just  considered,  the  ego 
of  the  subject  accompanies  the  aggregate  detached 
from  the  fluidic  body  and  forms  a  new  personality 
with  it.  The  resulting  combination  is  of  a  purely 
transitory  character,  and  is  restricted  to  the  period  of 
mediumistic  trance.  The  separation  involves  the  same 
fluidic  elements  when  the  same  personality  reappears, 
and  is  always  self-identical  in  successive  trances, 
while  it  retains  the  memory  of  past  trances  in  their 
integrity. 

This  explanation  permits  of  our  conceiving  that  the 
guiding  spirit,  peculiar  to  every  medium,  and  mani- 
festing itself  at  the  beginning  of  every  trance,  may  be 
viewed  as  a  simple  doubling  of  the  medium's  person- 
ality, if  indeed  the  guiding  spirit  is  not  entirely  ficti- 
tious, as  there  is  every  reason  to  suppose  it  is. 

It  must  be  noted  that  this  new  personality  does  not 
possess  the  same  permanent  character  which  is  to  be 
met  with  in  non-mediumistic  duplications;  for  very 
frequently  it  becomes  modified  with  time,  and  it  may 
even  vanish  during  a  single  seance  in  order  to  give 
place  to  different  personalities,  no  doubt  themselves 
the  result  of  a  particular  disintegration  of  the  fluidic 
body. 

These  creations  of  fresh  personalities  are  in 
a   certain    measure    influenced    by   the    unconscious 


EXAMINATION  OF  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES    361 

collaboration  of  those  present,  who,  it  would  appear, 
when  forming  a  chain  with  the  medium  emit  fluidic 
emanations  capable  of  combining  with  his;  and  one 
can  understand  that  the  fictitious  being  thus  formed 
should  give  rise  to  manifestations  which  show  it  to 
have  gathered  ideas  from  some  of  those  present. 
Thus  it  is  that  it  is  able  sometimes  to  reply  to 
purely  mental  questions  or  reveal  facts  of  which  the 
medium  was  unaware.  The  phenomenon  of  thought- 
reading  is  indeed  that  most  frequently  met  with  in 
spiritist  manifestations. 

Taking  the  recorded  observations  as  a  whole,  it  ap- 
pears that  this  "  reading  "  bears  chiefly  upon  ideas  qua 
ideas,  as  if  they  possessed  an  independent  existence 
of  the  kind  which  we  remarked  in  treating  of  tele- 
pathic phenomena.  The  subject  perceives  the  idea  of 
an  act  without  in  most  cases  being  able  to  tell  whether 
it  has  been  realised,  is  being  at  present  accomplished, 
or  still  remains  a  mere  project.  The  notion,  of  time 
appears  to  fade  away  before  the  vision  of  the  idea ;  and 
this  fact  is  even  more  striking  because,  in  hypnotic 
phenomena,  on  the  contrary,  the  subject  observes  time 
differences  with  minute  precision.  Perhaps  this  may 
be  due  to  the  fact  that  his  attention  is  then  especially 
drawn  to  time. 

Let  it  be  remarked  from  another  standpoint  that 
the  consideration  of  the  predominant  part  played 
by  the  idea  in  mediumistic  phenomena  may  explain 
why  the  observation  of  the  entranced  medium  is 
sometimes  directed  for  preference  to  an  obscure  fact 
known  only  to  one  person  present,  and  at  the 
moment  almost  forgotten  even  by  him.  It  is  pos- 
sible that  when  he  became  aware  of  the   fact,   it 


362  FUTURE  LIFE 

caused  a  vivid  impression  upon  him,  of  which  he 
unconsciously  retains  the  trace. 

The  foregoing  hypotheses  are  probably  sufficient  to 
explain  the  large  majority  of  mediumistic  phenomena, 
which  appear  to  obey  laws  that  are  doubtless  imper- 
fectly known,  but  none  the  less  fixed,  and  that  fulfil 
the  conditions  of  all  natural  laws.  True  it  is  that  we 
remark  a  certain  inevitable  spontaneity  in  the  study 
of  psychical  force;  but  the  manifestations  to  which 
it  gives  rise,  and  the  radiations  which  it  emits,  can  be 
explained  by  purely  natural  modes  of  action  for  which 
we  have  numerous  analogies.  Nothing  compels  us  to 
suppose  that  it  emanates  from  some  source  external 
to  the  subjects  observed. 

It  must,  however,  be  recognised  that  this  is  not 
always  the  case.  Undoubtedly  in  certain  exceptional 
instances  this  unknown  force  does  furnish  us  with 
evidences  which  are  quite  unfamiliar  and  cannot  be 
explained  by  the  foregoing  theory,  however  much  it 
may  be  strained.  In  our  inability  to  discover  another 
hypothesis  of  a  purely  natural  order,  we  are  led  to 
wonder  whether  this  force  does  not  emanate  from 
invisible  intelligences,  whether,  indeed,  it  is  not  a 
manifestation  of  the  souls  of  the  dead,  as  it  so  often 
asserts  itself  to  be. 

According  to  the  spiritist  theory  the  discarnate 
souls  retain  in  the  world  beyond  only  the  most  subtile 
portion  of  that  etheric  aggregate  of  which  we  are  seek- 
ing to  ascertain  the  existence  in  the  present  life.  In 
order  to  manifest  themselves  they  borrow  the  organs 
of  the  medium,  upon  whom  they  act  through  the 
agency   of   the   semi-material   odic   fluid   which   he  ^ 


EXAMINATION  OF  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES   363 

externalises;  they  substitute  their  personality  for  his, 
and  are  thus  able  to  act  and  speak  as  if  they  were  still 
possessed  of  physical  life.  These  are  evidently  facts  j 
of  paramount  interest,  which  would  at  once  settle  in 
the  affirmative  all  discussions  relative  to  survival  were  ^ 
their  authenticity  sufficiently  demonstrated.  It  is, 
however,  unfortunately  very  difficult  to  establish  with 
certitude  the  identity  of  the  manifestations  thus 
obtained. 

In  such  a  communication  the  surviving  relative, 
trembling  with  astonishment,  finds,  even  to  the  small- 
est particulars,  a  repetition  of  the  tricks  of  manner  and 
the  fancies  of  the  beloved  being  whom  he  has  lost, 
and  it  takes  in  his  eyes  a  positive  worth  which  it  has 
not  for  the  other  spectators.  O^et  he  must  wonder, 
whether  the  medium  has  not  unconsciously  read  inj  v 
his  mind  the  remarkably  exact  information  which  he 
has  been  surprised  to  find  in  the  medium's  words. ) 

The  communications  thus  obtained  are  not  entirely 
convincing  unless  they  bear  upon  points  unknown  to 
the  medium  and  to  the  persons  present,  the  verifica- 
tion of  which  is  at  the  same  time  very  difficult;  it 
being  granted  of  course,  even  then,  that  all  precau- 
tions have  been  taken  to  avoid  fraud,  which  is  always 
a  possibility. 

The  proof  thus  derived  would  be  even  more  decisive 
were  it  possible  to  induce  a  communication  revealing, 
for  instance,  the  contents  of  a  sealed  letter  known  only 
to  its  author  and  left  by  him  at  death,  with  the  promise 
that  he  would  subsequently  endeavour  to  communi- 
cate its  drift  by  mediumistic  means,  should  that  be 
possible  in  the  world  beyond. 

Such  an  experiment  has  indeed  been  tried  twice, 


VA^w^ 

^-^-■'    '^-' 

^*Xi    ♦ 

$4a4L^ 

-hA 

4 

Uk^^ 

Vv~c^fr)Ly 


XX*"^ 


364  FUTURE  LIFE 

namely,  by  Miss  Hannah  Wilde,  who  died  in  1884,  am 
and  by  Mr.  Stainton  Moses,  who  died  in  1892,  but  ^ 
up  to  now  it  has  not  yielded  the  hoped-for  results. 

However  that  may  be,  we  can  refer  to  the  experi- 
ments carried  out  under  the  auspices  of  the  Society 
for  Psychical  Research  by  Messrs.  Hodgson  and 
Hyslop.  The  medium  employed  was  a  very  remark-  ^^,. 
able  one,  Mrs.  Piper  by  name;  and  they  considered  M*^ 
their  results  to  be  conclusive.  After  fourteen  years 
of  persevering  research,  these  eminent  experimental- 
ists had  no  hesitation  in  declaring  that  certain  com- 
munications obtained  through  the  agency  of  this 
medium  appeared  to  them  to  emanate  really  from  the 
communicators  to  whom  they  were  ascribed,  especially 
as  far  as  two  cases  were  concerned,  namely,  those  of 
George  Pelham  and  Mr.  Hyslop's  father. 

In  the  report  which  Mr.  Hodgson  devoted  to  the 
manifestations  of  George  Pelham  in  particular,  he 
remarks  that  very  numerous  and  remarkable  proofs 
of  identity  were  forthcoming.  Pelham  was  able  to 
recognise  and  call  by  name  all  his  friends  who  came 
to  consult  the  medium,  to  inform  them  of  facts  un- 
known to  the  medium,  continue  the  last  conversations 
he  had  held  during  terrestrial  existence  much  about 
where  they  had  been  broken  off,  and  translate  several 
passages  from  the  Greek,  albeit  Mrs.  Piper  did  not 
even  know  the  characters  of  that  language. 

Not  but  that  in  these  communications,  which  are 
rightly  esteemed  to  be  among  the  most  clear  and  con- 
clusive, real  errors  and  discordant  statements  can  be 
remarked,  seeming  to  emanate  from  the  subconscious  ^ 
personality  of  the  medium ;  and  it  cannot  be  disguised 
that  this  mixture  of  truth  and  error  often  robs  the  best 


EXAMINATION  OF  PROPOSED  HYPOTHESES    365 

communications  of  the  greater  part  of  the  value  one 
would  wish  to  attribute  to  them.  Mistrust  is  in- 
creased when  one  has  to  deal  with  the  usual  kind  of 
communications.  It  cannot  be  denied  that  they  as  a 
rule  bear  upon  insignificant  details,  and  are  either 
frivolous  or  vulgar.  Occasionally  they  would  seem  to 
be  dictated  by  feelings  of  vain  and  lying  derision,  as 
if  they  emanated  from  some  mocking  spirit  that  re- 
joiced in  inflicting  deceptions  upon  the  living.  They 
give  us  no  precise  information  as  to  the  world  beyond, 
or  of  the  way  in  which  life  is  there  evolved;  and  of 
necessity  people  come  to  wonder  whether  their  invis- 
ible interlocutor  is  really  the  soul  of  one  dead,  as  he 
claims  to  be,  seeing  that  he  has  no  compassion  for  the 
ignorance  of  his  brethren  still  held  in  the  durance  vile 
of  matter,  or  whether  he  is  not  rather  the  spirit 
of  pride,  error,  and  untruth,  always  fired  by  some 
thought  hostile  to  mankind,  as  the  Church  supposes 
him  to  be.  And  here  we  recognise  that  the  observa- 
tion of  facts  may  furnish  interesting  arguments  even 
for  the  discussion  of  religious  dogma. 


ft-i.*^- 


CONCLUSIONS 

Evidences  of  Future  Life  found  in  both  science  and  Tradition. — 
Traces  of  this  Belief  found  in  Ancient  Monuments,  Laws,  and 
Customs.  —  Its  Value  in  quickening  Man's  Higher  Instincts. — 
Man's  Unwillingness  to  believe  in  Absolute  Extinction.  —  Light 
thrown  by  Astronomy  upon  the  History  of  the  Universe.  —  Science 
as  an  Aid  to  Philosophy.  —  Indestructibility  of  Matter  and  Force. 
Applicability  of  this  Law  to  Past  Events  and  to  Thought.  —  Ether 
the  Medium  of  Action  for  All  Forces.  —  The  Hypothesis  of  Ether 
necessary  to  the  Explanation  of  Material  Phenomena,  and  perhaps 
of  Life.  —  Phenomena  connected  with  the  Astral  Body.  —  Unre- 
-/liabiUty  of  Mediumistic  Communications.  —  The  Existence  of  an 

X  Immaterial  Element  in  Man  a  Matter  of  Hypothesis,  as  with  Ether. 
—  Probability  that  Consciousness  is  transformed,  if  not  destroyed,, 
by  Death.  —  Moral  Attainments  of  this  Life  probably  conserved  inl     , 
the  Next.  —  The  Astral  Body  probably  the  Medium  of  Feeling  in  the  \ 
Life  to  come.  —  Inability  of  Science  to  throw  Light  upon  our  Con-  1 
dition  after  Death.  —  Revelation  of  Man's  Likeness  to  the  Divine 
Trinity.  —  Dependence  of  Souls  in  Purgatory  upon  the  Prayers  of 
the  Living,  or  else  on  Reincarnation.  —  Difficulties  in  the  Way  of 
Belief  in  Reincarnation.  —  Importance  of  clinging  to  the  Principle 
of  Survival,  as  founded  on  both  Science  and  Tradition. 

IN  our  endeavour  to  track  down  the  elusive  phan- 
tom which  we  are  pleased  to  call  the  human  soul 
we  have  covered  an  immense  ground;  but  as 
we  have  pushed  forward  we  have  gathered  up,  one 
after  another,  any  scraps  of  evidence  capable  of  guid- 
ing us  in  our  investigation.  Beginning  with  an  ex- 
amination of  the  legendary  traditions  of  past  ages, 
we  have  ended  with  a  review  of  the  positive  obser- 
vations of  latter-day  science  together  with  its  most 
firmly   founded  theories.      It   is   now   our   duty   to 


CONCLUSIONS  367 

inquire  to  what  extent  the  truths  which  we  have  thus 
accumulated  are  able  to  shed  light  upon  the  eternal 
mystery  of  which  mankind  has  been  so  long  and 
fruitlessly  seeking  the  solution. 

It  must  be  admitted  that  in  the  course  of  our  re- 
peated inquiries  we  have  never  been  permitted  to 
obtain  a  complete  conception  of  man  such  as  would 
furnish  us  with  the  irrefragable  proof  which  we 
require;  nevertheless,  in  lieu  of  this  formal  concep- 
tion, which  mankind  is  perhaps  destined  never  to 
acquire,  we  have  been  able  to  discover  in  all  the  dif- 
ferent branches  of  knowledge,  manifold  evidences  the 
concordance  of  which,  owing  to  their  very  number, 
may  attain  to  a  probability  indefinitely  approximating 
to  certitude.  In  this  case  the  bringing  together  of 
observations  so  widely  different  in  their  origin  must 
of  necessity  lend  more  decisive  authority  to  the  con- 
clusions deducible  from  them. 

From  the  study  of  ancient  traditions  we  have 
learned,  first  of  all,  to  recognise  that  the  belief  in 
survival  had  influenced  man  from  the  very  outset  of 
history.  Such  a  belief  is  distinctly  assumed  in  the 
unwieldy  monuments  which  have  been  left  in  every 
region  of  the  world,  by  primitive  races  long  since  lost 
to  memory.  It  is  to  be  traced  with  equal  clearness  in 
the  laws  and  customs  of  ancient  peoples,  whose  legis- 
lation has  been  handed  down  intact  to  certain  con- 
temporary nations,  and  it  has  left  a  deep  impress 
upon  modern  States.  It  is  a  belief  which  has  gone  to 
form  the  common  basis  of  the  religious  traditions  of 
all  the  peoples  who  have  contributed  to  the  civilisa- 
tion of  the  human  species,  such  as  the  Hindus,  the 
Egyptians,  the  Chaldeans,  and  the  Gauls.    To  put  it 


S68  FUTURE  LIFE 

briefly,  we  may  say  that  it  sums  up  the  whole  teaching 
of  ancient  wisdom. 

In  historical  times  it  has  been  revived  by  modern 
religions,  especially  by  Christianity,  which,  in  show- 
ing that  the  deeds  of  our  present  life  are  destined  to 
receive  judgment  at  the  hands  of  divine  justice,  makes 
it  a  necessary  element  in  the  general  harmony  of 
creation. 
\  By  this  belief,  moreover,  Christianity  has  found  a 
j  means  of  quickening  all  the  nobler  instincts  of  man, 
of  instilling  into  him  devotion  and  consoling  him  in 
affliction,  of  showing  him,  in  fine,  the  superlative  dig- 
nity of  self-sacrifice  and  suffering,  which  are  the  best 
means  for  us  of  acquiring,  in  the  world  to  come,  that 
perfect  happiness  to  which  we  aspire,  but  which  the 
world  withholds. 

Thus  it  is  that  a  faith  in  the  survival  of  the  soul 
has  forced  itself  upon  man,  who,  despite  the  formal 
evidence  of  facts,  has  never  been  willing  to  admit  his 
absolute  extinction  in  death;  and,  since  he  is  bound 
to  confess  his  inability  to  reconcile  the  contradictory 
data  with  which  the  problem  confronts  him,  prefers 
to  maintain  the  illusion  of  life,  even  though  he  be 
compelled  to  fall  back  entirely  upon  his  imagina- 
tion in  order  to  represent  to  himself  that  new  ex- 
istence, the  conception  of  which  is  to  him  a  matter 
of  necessity. 

It  is  then  that  we  turn  to  science,  in  all  its  mani- 
festations, with  the  object  of  discovering  whether  it 
really  confirms  us  in  our  dreams,  which  it  controls 
at  least  in  points  bordering  on  its  domain,  and 
whether  it  may  not  even  afford  us  some  evidence 
of  the  activity  of  the  human  soul  such  as  would 


CONCLUSIONS  369 

permit  us  tO'  conclude  its  real  existence  and  arrive 
at  a  conception  of  its  nature. 

Astronomy  has  already  revolutionised  our  primi- 
tive notions  by  unfolding  to  our  astonished  eyes  the 
immensity  of  the  heavens.  It  has  disclosed  what  an 
insignificant  place  our  world  occupies  in  the  vast  uni- 
verse, amid  a  throng  of  countless  stars,  which  probably 
support  intelligent  and  corporeal  beings  like  our- 
selves; and  it  has  likewise  compelled  us  to  acknowl- 
edge the  impossibility  of  discerning,  in  the  measureless 
void  of  space,  the  material  heaven  and  hell  whither 
mankind  formerly  supposed  that  the  souls  of  those 
who  had  quitted  terrestrial  existence  migrated,  and 
it  has  led  us  to  transfer  the  scene  of  final  destinies  to 
an  immaterial  plane,  which  human  nature  in  its  present 
state  is  unable  to  perceive. 

By  the  help,  on  the  other  hand,  of  the  discoveries 
achieved  by  the  physical  sciences,  astronomy  has  at 
the  same  time  succeeded  in  throwing  unexpected  light 
upon  the  history  of  the  universe;  for  it  nowadays 
regards  creation,  taken  as  a  whole,  in  the  light 
of  a  true  dynamical  system,  obedient  to  known  laws 
and  progressing  by  a  series  of  imperceptible  trans- 
formations toward  an  end  which  we  are  able  to 
predetermine. 

We  are  aware  that  these  transformations  necea-^^    ^ 
sarily  result  in  the  destruction  of  the  highest  forms  U^^^'* 
of  energy,  such  as  motion,  light,  and  electricity,  and  ^^..44^ 
that  they  reduce  this  latter  to  its  least  developed  form,  W 
namely,  to  that  of  heat;   we  also  know  that  the  ele- 
ments composing  the  universe  tend  thus  to  reach  a 
uniform  temperature,  which  will  not  allow  of  life  or 
even  of  motion. 

24 


370  /FUTURE  LIFE 

The  universe  presents  itself  to  us  in  the  light  of  a 
vast  mechanism  of  which  we  perceive  only  the  para- 
sitical movements,  while  its  useful  working  eludes  us 
entirely.  By  a  perfectly  legitimate  extension  of  the 
same  reasoning  we  conclude  that  these,  the  highest 
manifestations  of  energy,  cannot  be  destroyed  without 
leaving  their  equivalent  upon  a  semi-material  plane, 
which,  though  we  cannot  approach  it  directly,  no 
doubt  involves  the  ultimate  reason  of  things,  the  ex- 
istence of  which  we  surmise  although  we  have  no 
perception  of  it.  We  at  the  same  time  recognise  that 
the  universe  possesses  a  determinate  history,  and  we 
thus  see  how  science  can  shed  light  upon  the  discus- 
sion of  philosophical  problems,  and  lends  probably 
conclusive  support  to  the  idea  of  an  original  creation. 
When  we  come  to  deal  more  particularly  with  the 
tangible  world,  we  see  that  the  material  atom  is  prob- 
ably not  endowed  with  that  absolute  immutability 
which  we  heretofore  ascribed  to  it,  and  this  gives  us 
yet  one  more  motive  for  rejecting  theories  based  upon 
the  idea  of  the  eternity  of  matter. 

Seeing  that  the  physical  sciences  thus  acquire  para- 
mount importance  in  our  inquiry,  we  turn  to  them  yet 
again,  and  discover  the  fundamental  law  of  indestruc- 
tibility governing  all  the  manifestations  of  matter  and 
mechanical  forces.  We  know  that  we  are  impotent 
to  create  or  to  destroy  the  minutest  material  atom, 
and  we  can  induce  no  new  manifestation  of  energy 
without  at  once  causing  an  equal  quantity  under  an- 
other form  to  disappear.  We  remarked  that  the  law 
of  indestructibility  applied  not  only  to  matter  and 
I  energy,  but  also  to  all  events  of  the  past,  which  also 
•  become    indestructible    when    once    they    have   been 


CONCLUSIONS  371 

/  j  recorded  in  the  vibrations  of  the  ether,  and  we  have 
I  every  reason  to  suppose  that  the  law  holds  good  of 
phenomena  purely  immaterial  in  appearance,  such  as 
thought,   seeing  that  the  ideas  which  we  conceive 
appear  also  to  be  inscribed  in  the  unending  vibrations 
of  the  invisible  ether.     We  recognise,  in  fine,  that 
nothing  whatsoever  in  the  universe  can  elude  the  in- 
evitable operation  of  the  incorruptible  law  which  eter- 
nally preserves  the  memory  of  the  past;  ^d  we  are 
hence  justified  in  concluding  that  the  living,  and  espe- 
cially the  conscious,  forces  must  also  be  amenable  to 
the  same  law,  for  it  can  scarcely  have  determined  to 
preserve  the  memory  of  our  most  insignificant  acts 
j  and  yet  be  unwilling  to  preserve  the  being  who  is  their 
I  author?) 

If  we  then  proceed  to  inquire  into  the  mode  of 
action  of  the  physical  forces,  in  the  hope  of  thence 
drawing  some  important  deduction  concerning  the 
nature  of  conscious  force,  the  existence  of  which  we 
are  thus  led  to  surmise,  we  find  that  all  of  them  are 
exercised  through  the  agency  of  a  hypothetical 
medium  which  we  term  the  ether,  for  it  is  to  it  that 
we  trace  back  the  most  divergent  manifestations  of 
energy.  According  to  our  conception,  the  ether 
effects  the  solidarity  of  all  the  elements  of  this  im- 
mense universe,  which  it  entirely  pervades;  it  is 
capable  of  transmitting  the  effort,  almost  immeas- 
urably great,  by  which  the  planets  are  maintained  in 
their  orbits,  and  at  the  same  time  the  most  delicate 
and  most  minute  of  electric,  calorific,  or  luminous 
actions.  It  produces  with  equal  fidelity  each  tremor 
of  life,  and  it  is  the  requisite  agent  in  the  production 
of  all  phenomena.    But  the  ether  is  even  more  than 


S72  FUTURE  LIFE 

this,  for  we  think  to  discover  it  to-day  in  the  very 
constitution  of  matter.  The  atom,  despite  its  in- 
finitely small  dimensions,  appears  to  us  to  be  a  kind 
of  infinite  world,  formed  by  the  union  of  etheric  mol- 
ecules the  distribution  of  which  determines  its  funda- 
mental properties. 

Thus,  in  order  to  explain  the  slightest  material  fact, 
we  are  bound  to  fall  back  upon  the  hypothesis  of  an 
ether,  which  henceforth  becomes  for  us  the  one  reality, 
the  hidden  reason  inspiring  matter;  as  the  ancients 
put  it,  "  Mens  agitat  molem."  Are  we  not  therefore 
entitled  to  look  to  the  ether  for  an  explanation  of  life 
itself?  May  we  not  consider  life  as  depending  upon 
the  action  of  some  special  immaterial  aggregate,  per- 
haps more  subtile  even  than  the  ether? 

We  now  look  upon  etheric  radiations  as  a  necessary 
property  of  inert  matter.  Is  it  not  legitimate  to  dis- 
cover them  also  in  the  organic  world,  and  to  view 
them  as  the  manifestations  of  that  subtile  aggregate 
which  determines  the  form  and  growth  of  living 
beings  ? 

Among  lower  organisms  this  aggregate  is  scarcely 
differentiated  from  the  material  atom;  but  as  we 
ascend  the  organic  scale,  it  becomes  gradually  more 
and  more  refined:  it  adopts  at  the  same  time  more 
and  more  subtile  elements  as  soon  as  consciousness 
becomes  more  perfectly  awakened,  as  is  the  case  with 
the  higher  animals,  and  especially  with  man,  in  whom 
it  is  accompanied  by  the  exercise  of  the  highest 
faculties  of  the  soul. 

We  thus  come  back  to  very  much  what  ancient  doc- 
trine taught,  namely,  that  the  different  faculties  were 
so  many  distinct  elements  in  the  immaterial  portion 


CONCLUSIONS  373 

of  man,  or  in  that  astral  envelope  which,  according 
to  Plato,  was  the  chariot  of  the  soul;  and  this  con- 
ception would  nowadays  appear  to  have  acquired  addi- 
tional authority  from  a  scientific  standpoint,  as  a 
result  of  the  researches  at  present  being  prosecuted 
into  such  strange  phenomena  as  the  externalisation 
of  the  astral  body  and  the  transmission  of  thought 
to  a  distance,  phenomena  which  we  have  already 
discussed. 

If  it  were  moreover  possible  to  prove  that  medium- 
istic  communications  do  in  reality  bring  us  messages 
from  beyond  the  grave,  they  would  in  themselves  fur- 
nish us  with  the  decisive  proof  for  which  mankind  has 
so  long  craved.  It  is,  however,  to  be  feared  that  they 
will  always  lack  the  probative  force  to  which  we  are 
accustomed  when  studying  material  facts. 

The  forces  of  which  we  wish  to  prove  the  existence 
are  indeed  of  a  different  order  from  those  acting 
directly  upon  matter,  but  as  they  can  manifest  them- 
selves only  through  the  medium  of  the  latter,  it  is 
to  be  feared  that  the  reality  of  their  intervention  will 
always  be  open  to  doubt.  Still,  it  should  be  noted  that 
all  the  etheric  movements  by  which  we  are  wont  to 
explain  the  action  of  the  physical  forces  are  not  pos- 
sessed of  more  certain  reality;  for  they  elude  all 
direct  observation,  and,  apart  from  their  effect  upon 
matter,  they  never  acquire  energy  enough  to  interfere 
with  the  dynamical  equilibrium  of  material  systems. 

The  ignorance  to  which  we  are  condemned  with 
regard  to  the  invisible  world  is  undoubtedly  the  nec- 
essary result  of  the  imperfection  of  our  human  nature, 
which  renders  us  unable  to  perceive  elements  more 
subtile  than  those  of  the  material  plane,  above  which 


374  FUTURE  LIFE 

we  cannot  rise;  and  since  science  compels  us  to 
suppose  their  existence,  but  is  unable  to  show  them 
to  us,  are  we  not  compelled  to  admit  that  the  idea  of 
the  existence  in  man  of  an  independent  immaterial 
element  forces  itself  upon  us  with  a  probability  which 
equals,  if  it  does  not  surpass,  that  of  all  the  theoretical 
conceptions  of  positive  science? 

If  the  soul  really,  in  the  way  that  we  have  seen,  pos- 
sesses an  independent  existence  upon  a  plane  other 
than  that  of  matter,  we  cannot  suppose  it  to  be  neces- 
sarily involved  in  the  death  of  the  physical  body. 
Rather  ought  we  to  think  that  it  returns  to  the  invis- 
ible world  whence  it  emanated,  there  to  fulfil  the 
course  of  its  unending  destinies. 

Thus  formulated,  faith  in  survival  seems  to  us  to 
be  the  inevitable  consequence  of  the  scientific  concep- 
tion of  the  human  soul ;  but,  although  it  may  furnish 
us  in  principle  with  the  formal  affirmation  for  which 
we  sought,  it  cannot  satisfy  our  restless  curiosity, 
for  it  knows  nothing  of  the  conditions  in  which  that 
future  life  shall  be  passed. 

Mediumistic  communications,  which  pretend  to 
come  from  beyond  the  grave,  have  never  shed  the 
slightest  light  upon  this  essential  problem ;  they  have 
not  opened  up  for  us  any  new  and  enlarged  view  of 
the  destiny  which  awaits  us.  So  weak  is  man's  estate 
that  he  cannot  even  fashion  a  speculative  theory  which 
completely  satisfies  him,  and  renounces  any  attempt 
to  base  it  on  the  observation  of  facts.  Even  if  we 
admit  the  immediate  survival  of  consciousness,  we 
are  bound  to  recognise  that  it  must  undergo  a  radi- 
cal transformation,  owing  to  the  mere  fact  of  its 


CONCLUSIONS  375 

separation  from  the  physical  body.  This  change  is 
continually  going  on,  even  during  the  present  life, 
and  although  from  moment  to  moment  it  may  seem 
imperceptible,  it  nevertheless  is  incessantly  operative, 
and  in  certain  cases  may  acquire  an  importance  im- 
possible to  foresee. 

The  old  man  who  has  passed  through  life  and  has 
alternately  experienced  its  good  fortune  and  its  re- 
verses finds  that  it  requires  an  effort  when  he  conjures 
his  memories,  to  imagine  what  kind  of  a  being  he  was 
in  all  these  diverse  circumstances.  The  same  events 
impressed  him  differently  according  as  he  was  rich 
or  poor,  strong  or  feeble,  prosperous  in  health  or 
crippled  by  disease,  able  or  not  to  exert  all  the  facul- 
ties which  life  puts  in  the  service  of  man.  Now  he 
no  longer  has  the  same  needs,  desires,  or  powers,  and 
he  feels  that  his  inner  self  has  in  every  respect  pro- 
foundly changed. 

Even  so  the  mother  who,  after  long  years  of  sepa- 
ration, finds  her  loved  son  once  more  in  her  arms, 
is  bound  to  recognise  that  she  no  longer  has  before 
her  the  child  whom  she  remembers,  but  a  new  being 
with  other  thoughts  than  his.  So  true  it  is  that  we 
are  in  a  constant  state  of  moral  as  well  as  physical 
change. 

If  life,  then,  changes  the  psychical  consciousness, 
how  much  more  profound  must  be  the  transforma- 
tion ensuing  upon  death;  for  it,  at  one  stroke,  robs 
the  disincarnate  soul  of  all  its  former  means  of 
action,  and  carries  it  to  a  new  plane  where  almost 
all  the  cares  which  have  hitherto  occupied  it  will 
be  for  the  future  objectless.  The  needs  of  material 
life,  the  pursuit  of  wealth  and  happiness,  the  joys 


376  FUTURE  LIFE 

and  bitterness  of  this  world,  —  all  that  went  to 
make  up  life  has  vanished;  and  perhaps  the  soul 
may  no  longer  make  the  effort  to  return,  even  in 
thought,  to  its  previous  condition.  CXhe  winged 
butterfly  which  darts  so  lightly  upwards  despises  the 
crawling  caterpillar  chained  to  earth,  and  the  chrys- 
alis motionless  as  in  death*?)  Doubtless  it  has  for- 
gotten those  dark  stages  which  were  necessary  to 
allow  of  its  resplendent  reawakening.  Even  so,  the 
state  of  consciousness  of  the  disembodied  soul  is 
no  doubt  determined  by  the  new  life  upon  which  it 
enters.  All  that  it  is  permissible  for  us  to  conceive 
is  that  it  may  preserve  the  moral  progress  which  it 
has  realised  in  the  course  of  earthly  existence.  Prob- 
ably it  yet  retains  feelings  of  desire  and  suffering, 
since  the  astral  element  which  it  carried  with  it  alone 
possesses  sensitivity,  which  we  erroneously  attribute 
to  the  physical  body;  and  thus  maybe  it  reaps  chas- 
tisement for  its  excessive  love  of  the  things  of  carnal 
life.  For  henceforth  it  is  impotent  to  gratify  the 
needs  and  longings  which  survive  in  it  together  with 
the  astral  body.  Doubtless  this  punishment  is  des- 
tined to  endure  as  long  as  this  semi-material  envelope. 
Crude  and  vague  as  this  conception  may  appear,  it 
is  perhaps  the  only  one  which  can  afford  us  an  ap- 
proximate notion  of  what  life  may  be  in  those  places 
of  correction  which  we  call  purgatory  and  hell. 

If  scientific  observation  affords  us  this  slight  glim- 
mering, it  is,  unfortunately,  not  able  to  do  more.  We 
should  like,  indeed,  to  know  if  the  disembodied  soul 
can  act  to  any  purpose  in  endeavouring  to  better  its 
assigned  condition,  or  whether  it  can  hasten  the 
moment  of  its  deliverance  from  this  Nessus  shirt,  this 


CONCLUSIONS  377 

envelope  of  unappeased  desires,  which  is  the  chas- 
tisement hinted  at  in  ancient  legend.  Above  all,  we 
would  know  whether  all  souls  may  hope  for  final 
freedom,  or  whether  certain  of  the  most  guilty  sin- 
ners, who  have  allowed  every  seed  of  a  higher  life 
to  be  choked,  whether  they  will  be  condemned  to 
an  eternity  of  misery.  We  wonder,  on  the  other 
hand,  whether  in  its  eternal  bliss  the  soul  is  still  able 
to  climb  higher  toward  divine  perfection  and  to  pass 
through  those  different  mansions  which  make  up  the 
house  of  the  Father,  as  the  Christ  says. 

All  these  are  questions  to  which  we  are  unable  to 
reply,  and,  as  we  before  remarked,  science  itself  can- 
not even  guide  the  imagination  toward  a  theoretical 
solution.  Religious  faith  alone  would  seem  in  a 
position  to  afford  us  the  desired  answer.  All  that 
we  possess  is  the  conception  of  a  state  of  infinite 
perfection  set  before  us  as  the  unattainable  goal  of 
all  our  endeavours.  Toward  it  we  must  eternally 
struggle,  hopeless  of  ever  reaching  it.  Building  upon 
this  idea,  which  alone  can  illuminate  our  dreams,  we 
may,  perhaps,  say  that  the  perfection  of  which  we 
then  have  a  glimpse  must  accord  with  the  intimate 
constitution  of  the  soul,  whose  final  object  it  is.  It 
must  therefore  affect  the  various  faculties  in  which 
that  soul  manifests  itself. 

Now,  the  soul  is  capable  of  volition,  intelligence, 
and  love;  it  desires  the  good,  conceives  the  truth, 
and  loves  the  beautiful.  It  feels  and,  as  it  were, 
pursues  these  primordial  ideas  beyond  the  merely 
transitory  manifestations  in  which  they  are  clothed 
here  below,  and  experiences  the  need  of  uniting  itself 
with  them  in  an  even  closer  communion,  which  finds 


378  FUTURE  LIFE 

its  most  lofty  manifestation  in  charity.  Thus  it 
comes  to  conceive  that  notion  of  a  divine  Trinity 
wherein  it  finds  a  reflection  of  itself:  the  Father, 
whose  will  maintains  the  world,  the  Son,  who  is 
its  Word  and  Intelligence,  and  the  Spirit  of  love 
and  charity.  These  three  Persons  are  the  goal  of 
its  three  faculties. 

This  is,  no  doubt,  a  principle  which  appears  to 
be  self-evident,  but  we,  unfortunately,  do  not  see  how 
it  can  receive  its  application  in  the  future  life.  We 
know  that  life  is  a  perpetual  evolution;  and  it  is 
repugnant  to  us  to  suppose  that  this  evolution  comes 
to  an  end  in  the  world  beyond,  which  is  a  plane  of 
the  universe  just  like  our  own.  But  we  cannot,  on 
the  other  hand,  conceive  how  the  activity  of  an  im- 
material being  can  contribute  to  its  moral  progress. 

We  live  in  a  world  of  suffering  and  pain,  and  are 
constantly  obliged  to  struggle  against  triumphant  evil 
and  rebellious  nature,  and  at  this  price  alone  can 
we  purchase  merit  and  progress;  we  cannot  con- 
ceive how  it  could  be  otherwise.  Doubtless  the  moral 
universe  is  formed  by  the  one  vast  communion  of 
the  living  and  the  dead,  of  the  suffering  and  tri- 
umphant Church,  and  of  the  Church  militant,  and 
we  know  that  the  dead  who  are  in  heaven  or  in 
purgatory  cannot  completely  forget  the  beloved  ones 
whom  they  have  left  upon  the  earth.  We  discover 
their  guardianship  in  the  good  thoughts  with  which 
they  inspire  us;  but,  although  this  intervention 
certainly  attests  the  spirit  of  charity  by  which  they 
are  animated  in  the  world  beyond,  yet  we  cannot 
understand  how  that  interposition  can  entail  the 
self-sacrifice    and    devotion    which    alone,    in    our 


CONCLUSIONS  379 

estimation,   can  give  it   real   merit;  and   it   is  not 
without  good  reason  that  the  Christian  dogma  seems 
to  deny  personal  activity  to  the  souls  of  the  dead, 
at  least  in  purgatory.     It  consequently  causes  their,  ^^w-^ 
deliverance  to  depend  exclusively  upon  the  prayers  ofl^  f'^^ 
the  living,  which  alone  can  obtain  in  their  favour  (^  ^ 
the  application  of  the  infinite  merits  of  the  Saviour,  'x*.^^  \ 
But  if  we  suppose  that  the  imperfectly  purified  soul  '^  ^*^ 
is  to  return  to  the  earth,  and  there,  in  a  new  incar- 
nation, to  carry  on  its  unending  development,  we 
recur   to   the   doctrine   of   antiquity,    which    indeed 
concords  better  than  any  other  with  the  conception 
of  an  infinite  progress,  of  which  we  cannot  divest 
ourselves.     At  the  same  time  we  are  compelled  to 
recognise  that  this  theory  also  gives  rise  to  grave 
difficulties. 

Evidently  it  cannot  rest  upon  the  observation  of 
facts,  seeing  that  we  have  lost  all  memory  of  a 
prior  existence.  This,  however,  is  by  no  means  the 
most  decisive  objection;  for  we  may  admit  that 
the  consciousness  of  the  moral  being  is  determined 
by  the  nature  of  the  semi-material'  envelope  sur- 
rounding the  ego,  and  we  must  consequently  con- 
clude that  it  undergoes  an  entire  transformation 
when  it  takes  on  a  new  envelope.  Of  the  past  it 
retains  only  the  more  or  less  developed  psychical 
faculties  which  it  possesses  at  birth,  together  with 
dim  recollections,  hidden  away  in  the  depths  of  sub- 
consciousness, of  which  it  has  no  perception  in  the 
normal  state. 

In  order  to  give  certainty  to  the  theory  of  the 
plurality  of  material  existences,  we  should  require 
to  show  in  the  manifestations  of  subconsciousness 


/  / 

380  FUTURE  LIFE 

some  undeniable  trace  of  memories  or  knowledge 
which  the  normal  consciousness  could  not  possibly 
have  acquired  in  the  course  of  the  present  existence. 
This  yet  remains  to  be  satisfactorily  demonstrated, 
despite  the  fact  that  certain  mediumistic  experiments 
and  the  observation  of  certain  infant  prodigies  are 
strongly  in  favour  of  the  theory.  It  nevertheless 
encounters  a  yet  more  grave  objection  in  the  fact 
that  the  history  of  mankind  does  not  in  any  way 
appear  to  confirm  the  idea  of  uninterrupted  moral 
progress,  which  is  its  foundation.  It  is  true  that 
we  find  humanity  to  have  made  a  certain  amount 
of  progress  as  far  as  sensitivity  and  intellect  are 
concerned,  but  w^e  do  not  notice  anything  of  the 
same  kind  with  regard  to  morals.  We  do  not  think 
that  people  of  our  own  times,  when  tempted  to  com- 
mit a  dishonest  act  to  their  own  profit,  would  be 
better  able  to  resist  than  were  their  ancestors  sev- 
eral centuries  back;  but  if  we  are  actually  those 
ancestors,  once  more  come  back  to  the  earth,  ought 
we  not  to  display  higher  morality  than  in  our  pre- 
vious existence?^  For  this  would  be  the  only  true 
criterion  of  the  progress  which,  according  to  theory, 
is  the  sole  aim  and  object  of  our  successive  exist- 
ences. To  follow  up  a  remark  which  is,  perhaps, 
over-pessimistic,  one  begins  even  to  wonder,  in  the 
case  of  many  of  our  contemporaries,  whether  the 
existence  which  they  are  at  present  leading  upon 
earth  corresponds  to  any  certain  moral  progress,  or 
to  the  formation  of  a  more  purified  kerdar,  accord- 
ing to  the  Chaldean  conception;  or  whether  it  does 
not  too  often  represent  an  absolute  halt  or  even  a 
retrogression  in  the  forward  path  which  is  set  before 


CONCLUSIONS  381 

them.  In  order  to  escape  from  this  dilemma,  we 
may  doubtless  endeavour  to  transfer  to  planetary 
worlds  the  scene  of  this  infinite  evolution,  the  idea 
of  which  forces  itself  upon  us  in  spite  of  the  con- 
tradictions which  the  observation  of  every-day  facts 
would  appear  to  create.  But  here  again  we  encounter 
the  same  objections  as  we  did  before.  If  these  far- 
off  humanities  know  no  evil,  if  they  have  not  to 
struggle  against  the  sinful  instinct  of  their  imper- 
fect nature,  we  do  not  see  how  they  can  acquire  any 
merit;  and  if,  on  the  contrary,  as  is  more  probable, 
the  celestial  worlds  which  they  inhabit  are  vales  of 
tears  just  as  is  ours,  it  is  to  be  conjectured  that 
intelligent  beings  would  not  there  make  more  progress 
than  do  we  ourselves,  and  would  be  unable  to  purge 
their  material  nature  of  the  gross  desires  inherent 
in  it.  Here  again  we  light  upon  no  completely  sat- 
isfactory solution,  for  all  that  we  are  now  treading 
the  ground  of  pure  imagination,  and  thus  momen- 
tarily escaping  the  control  of  observed  facts ;  and  we 
must  consequently  admit  that  in  our  present  state 
we  are  quite  incapable  of  forming  the  slightest  idea 
of  what  may  be  the  planes  of  life  in  the  universe 
other  than  our  own.  If  we  are  destined  never  to 
know  aught  of  a  future  life;  if  we  must  ask  of  re- 
ligious faith  to  re\;eal  to  us  a  world  which  man's 
weak  reason  cannot  discover  by  itself,  we  should, 
on  the  other  hand,  in  the  name  of  science,  cling 
energetically  to  the  principle  of  survival,  which,  as 
we  have  seen,  is  presented  to  us  upon  the  double 
authority  of  the  deductions  based  upon  universal 
tradition,  and  upon  the  observation  of  facts. 

Non  omnis  moriar,  exclaimed  the  Roman  poet, 


882  FUTURE  LIFE 

^who  had  imbibed  all  that  ancient  wisdom  had  to 
Iteach;  and  one  of  our  most  eminent  men  of  science, 
Frederic  Myers,  recovered  faith  in  survival  through 
the  investigations  which  he  carried  out  in  the  name 
of  the  Society  for  Psychical  Research,  and  in  the 
hour  of  death  he  reiterated  his  affirmation  of  that 
belief  as  based  upon  scientific  conviction.  It  is  the 
answer  to  the  cry  of  a  latter-day  poet  who  reechoes 
the  general  prayer  of  all  mankind: 

**  Fais  naitre  un  renouveau  supreme 
Au  coeur  des  morts." 

Christian  faith  had  long  before  given  expression 
to  it  in  the  noble  preface  to  the  Service  for  the 
Dead;  as  if  it  had  felt  and  instinctively  foreseen 
the  law  of  indestructibility  which  was  to  arise  out 
of  the  future  discoveries  of  positive  science. 

Tuis  Udelibus,  Domine,  Vita  mutatur,  non  tollitur. 


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OVERDUE. 


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